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V 




Kate Ford’s Family 



BY 


SUSIE JEWETT HOWE 



CINCINNATI 

THE EDITOR PUBLISHING CO 
1899. 

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Copyright 

The Editor Publishing Company 

1899. 


TWOCOPlLa niSiUUlVt&O. 





. V O . 



This book is affectionately dedicated 
to my sister 

ELIZABETH D. JEWETT, 
my dearest friend 

as an appreciation of her perseverance 
and energy. 



CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER. Page. 

I The Awakening of Kate Ford - - 1 

II Kate as Housekeeper - - 9 

III A Hard Day’s Work - - - 23 

IV Kate’s Trials - - - - 31 

V Mrs. Graves’ Visit - - - 41 

VI Earnest Endeavors - - - 55 

VII Through the Arch of Fire - - 63 

VIII An Irish Friend - _ . 73 

IX Frost and Despair - - - - 82 

X Seeking a New Home - - 96 

XI The New Home - - . - 114 

XII The Search for the Cow - - 126 

XIII Kate as a Cattle Herder - - - 135 

XIV Kirt’s New Friend - - - 151 

XV The Reward of Labor _ _ - 137 

XVI Mr. Ford Finds Favor in His 

Wife’s Eyes at Last - - - 180 



KATE FORD’S FAMILY. 


CHAPTEE I. 


Cl?e Aroakentng of Kote 

“Please Mis’ Ray, ma wants to borrow a pail 
of flour. We’ll get some Sat ’day and pay you 
then.” 

“Yes, in a moment,” answered a voice, “sit 
down and wait until I get the biscuit in the 
oven. I will be out directly.” 

“Yes’m,” and with a thud the girl dropped 
into the nearest chair by the kitchen door, and 
setting the large pail down by her side vainly 
endeavored to hide her bare brown feet behind 
the rounds of the chair, while she waited for 
Mrs. Ray to get the flour. The door into the 
sitting-room opened presently, and a tall spare 
woman came out, knitting a blue stocking, the 
ball of which rolled from her hand across the 
floor to the girl’s chair, who, however, made no 
move to pick it up, but kicked it along toward 
its owner, smiling mischievously as she saw the 
pretty tangle it had made in the yarn. 

The woman picked it up hastily, and casting 
1 


2 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


a look of disgust at the girl asked icily ; “How’s 
your folks to-day, Kate?” 

“O ! pretty well, I guess,” the girl replied 
lightly, “all but ma; she’s got a lame back. 
Another crick.” 

“Seems to me she’s alius havin’ cricks, aint 
she? What’s your pa a-doin’? hustlin’ about his 
spring work, I suppose,” this with a touch of 
irony which did not escape the girl’s quick ear. 
She flushed angrily, and retorted quickly : 

“I do not know as it is any of your concerns. 
Mis’ Grimes, what pa’s a-doin’. He minds his 
own business, and that’s more than some of the 
neighbors do.” 

Mrs. Grimes scowled fiercely, but made no 
reply. Mrs. Ray, coming out of the pantry, en- 
deavored to hide a smile as she placed the bis- 
cuit in the oven, then asking the girl into the 
pantry she carefully weighed out the flour, call- 
ing in her husband to see if it was correct to the 
last ounce. With a “Thank you,” Kate took the 
flour and started for the door, but paused long 
enough to ask if there was any mail. 

‘ ‘Mr. Downs went awhile ago, ” was the reply ; 
and without waiting to say good-bye she darted 
from the door and sped down the road toward 
her home. She had gone but a short distance, 
when on hearing the sound of wheels she looked 
back and saw Mr. Downs driving away from 
Mr. Ray’s house. “I’ll go back and see if there’s 
any mail,” she thought, and climbing over the 
fence, she made her way over the freshly 
ploughed garden-plat to the back of the house. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


3 


She paused a moment to take breath before go- 
ing in, and heard her name spoken angrily in 
Mrs. Grimes’ high rasping voice. 

“That Kate Ford is the worst tom-boy of a 
girl I ever see. She hasn’t any sense or bringin’ 
up at all. She’s the sassiest piece in town.” 

“Well, how can she have any manners?” as- 
sented Mrs. Ray. “The poor child is a law unto 
herself. Her mother has no control over her at all, 
and her father never tries to have; and she will 
not listen to anyone. I am sorry for the children 
for they have no bringing up.” 

Kate turned a deep crimson at those words. 
Her heart beat well-nigh as if it would burst, 
but creeping a little nearer she forced herself to 
listen to what was .said. Mrs. Grimes began 
again : 

“Of course they have no bringing up, nor no 
manners either. They’re a worthless, shiftless 
lot, the hull tribe of ’em and that Kate is the 
worst of ’em all. If all the likin’s I have for 
that tribe could be put into a bag and shook up, 
there wouldn’t be enough to put in a thimble 
Did you ever see such a lookin’ house in all 
your life?” 

“Well, it is pretty dusty,” agreed Mrs. Ray 

“Dusty!” Mrs. Grimes fairly shrieked. “I 
should say as much. There ain’t a clean place 
in the house. Not as it is really filthy, but it is 
all topsy-turvey and confusion, and such a goin’ 
on of rack and ruin I never see. Why, when 
they came here five years ago they had things 
pretty well fixed, much better than the rest of 


4 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


us had, and now look at ’em. There haint a 
hull piece of furniture in the house, and hardly 
as much as a hull dish, I might say, and I don’t 
believe they have a square meal of vittels once 
a year ; and as for a decent garment there aint 
one of ’em from old Ford himself to that squall- 
ing Irene has such a thing.” 

‘T know it is all as you say,Mis’ Grimes,” Kate 
Jheard Mrs. Ray answer, “but I’d do something 
for Kate if she would let me. I really like her. 
She is the smartest one in the family I think. I 
wish she had stayed for the mail. There’s a lot 
of it here.” 

“Yes, a lot more papers for that Minnie, and 
for Ford too; that’s all they do, is to read. I 
don’t believe that lazy trollop of a Minnie ever 
thinks there’s anything to do but read and study 
and a likely amount of good it will ever do her. 
Nobody that knows the Fords would ever hire 
her to teach a school ; and Ford himself is such 
a fool that he would not know his family was 
starving if he only had a book before his nose.” 

“But Minnie is a quiet girl, and folks say she 
is smart to study. She corresponds for the pa- 
pers and of course gets them that way,” was Mrs. 
Ray’s answer. 

Mrs. Grimes sniffed: 

“Yes, she gets the news, that’s true enough. 
Everybody she sees she asks them to tell her the 
news, and as true as I live, Mrs. Ray, there aint 
a worse gossip in all this Higgins district than 
that Mis’ Ford. Why every time I go there, 
she has some gossip to tell me that Mis’ Downs 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


5 


has said, and Mis’ Downs says it is jest the 
same every time she goes there. Her tongue’s 
alius running either about the neighbors or 
about Ford himself, and I guess she gives it to 
him about right, too.” 

The girl under the window held her breath to 
listen. She was quivering with indignation at 
every word that was uttered. The old adage, 
that listeners never hear any good of them- 
selves, w^as true in this case, but she remained 
motionless while the woman went on : 

“I know folks tell that she is sick, but I be- 
lieve that it is more than half put on, and that 
she could work some if she tried, or else set that 
great lazy Minnie and tom-boy Kate at work, so 
their house would not look so much like a hog- 
pen. Now I am sick all the time and you aint 
well either,Mis’ Ray, but there aint either of us 
but what does a lot of work every day, and if 
she want such a tattler and complainer she 
could too ; or as I w^as a sayin, make them girls 
do it. Why, when my two girls were their age 
they knew enough to do all the work and do it 
well too, and I don’t believe that Kate Ford 
knows enough to wash a mess of dishes clean; 
all she knows is to tramp in the woods, ride horse 
or drive team like any boy, while all she ever does 
in the house is to take care of that miserable 
little young’un, Irene, who yells all the time she 
isn’t there.” 

“Yes, yes, Mrs. Grimes,” interrupted Mrs. 
Ray, “I know all that, but as I said before, the 
children have never had any bringing up, and so 


6 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


they are not so much to blame; and Mrs. Ford 
certainly isn’t well. Why, the doctor said, 
when Irene was born, two years ago, that he did 
not believe she would ever be able to do much 
again.” 

‘‘Tush! then she might have set that lazy 
Kate to work. Did you hear how she spoke to^ 
night when I asked her about her father? How 
I wanted to box her ears — the little huzzy. She 
knows it is true that her father is too lazy to 
work, and that precious Kirt, her twin, is 
another. All he knows is that old fiddle. He 
is too lazy to breathe. The boys call him ‘The 
Fiddling Parson’ and a good name it is too ; and 
that young’un Bessie, alius taggin’ at his heels, 
will be just such a good for nothing as the rest. 
That tribe ought to be run out of town. Mis’ 
Downs, and I was talkin’ of writing’ to the 
Home for Destitute Children and see if they 
wouldn’t do somethin’ to prevent them children 
from growin’ up like the rest of the Fords. Mis’ 
Downs says, says she — ” 

But Kate did not want to hear any more. 
Take the children ! The thought was too dread- 
ful, and with a smothered cry she sprang up 
from behind the rain barrel which had given her 
a good shelter during the tirade, and darted 
across the field for home. 

Once out of sight of the house she sat down 
to think over the dreadful things she had heard. 
Was it possible that they were as bad as that 
woman had said. She knew they were not like 
other folks, but she had always laid it to their 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


7 


being poor ; but the bitter words she had heard 
had opened her eyes, and forcing back the tears 
and sobs, she quieted herself as best she could and 
walked slowly homewards. 

The door of the little hot kitchen was open, 
as she entered and stood for a moment silently 
comparing it with Mrs. Ray’s tidy kitchen. At 
the table sat the family eating a very spare meal 
of Johnny-cake, boiled eggs and milk; the 
mother alone having a cup of tea. The table 
Kate noticed with a pang, was untidily set ; the 
dishes were either broken or cracked, the 
knives and forks discolored with many stains ; 
while the floor, besides being littered with paper 
and shavings, was strewed wuth broken egg 
shells. The cracked and rickety stove smoked 
badly; and through the open door into the pan- 
try, she could see the same disorder; the dishes 
and pans piled hit-or-miss upon the shelves in- 
terspersed with pans of milk and plates of 
broken food. 

She took it all in at a glance. “It must be 
so,” she thought, “that we are just like pigs; 
just as Mis’ Grimes said, but I’ll show her that 
if I’m a tom-boy I can do something some 
day.” 

Striding into the pantry she set the pail on the 
shelf with a jerk, jarring some of the flour out 
on the untidy floor as she did so, and coming 
out she slammed the door behind her ; then after 
throwing her hat into the corner she drew up a 
rickety chair and sat down at the table ; but 
recollecting herself instantly, she got up, 


8 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


picked up her hat, and hung it on a nail ; then 
seated herself again at the table. 

“Whew!” whistled her twin brother, amused 
at this extraordinary proceeding, “our Katy-did 
is getting neat. Hope the streak will last.” 

The girl made no reply but passed her plate 
for some of the Johnny-cake. Her older sister 
Minnie asked her if there was any mail. 

“Mis’ Ray said Mr. Downs had gone for it,” 
she answered evasively. 

“Seems to me you were gone a pretty long 
time for the flour, wasn’t you,” began the mother 
querulously, “Irene has screamed nearly all the 
time you’ve been gone. I wish next time you 
are not coming back right away you would take 
her with you. She is too much for me with my 
poor health.” 

“I couldn’t come any quicker,” she answered 
briefly, and then rose from the table, feeling as if 
she would break down, if obliged to eat another 
mouthful. The baby threw up her arms to be 
taken, and lifting her from her chair she went 
out doors, and seating herself upon a log, 
rocked the child to sleep while she pondered bit- 
terly over what she had heard. 


CHAPTER II. 


Kate as ijousekseper. 

She sat by herself for nearly an hour; long 
after the sturdy little limbs had grown quiet, 
and the child’s soft breathing against her cheek 
told the elder sister that the little one was fast 
asleep. 

The soft May twilight deepened into night, 
but she still sat there thinking gloomily of what 
she had heard, while her mind went back in 
a swift retrospect over the five years they had 
lived in that neighborhood. She recalled with 
distinctness their pleasant, comfortable home 
in Pennsylvania, presided over by her father’s 
sister, Eliza; of her death, then her father’s 
subsequent determination to move West to the 
land of opportunities, where he would stand a 
chance with the best of them in politics, and 
not be under the rule of “party bosses.” She 
knew that this home had been sold at a sacri- 
fice, that her father had come to that county 
with considerable money, had located on that 
piece of land, thinking he would make a fortune 
out of the timber ; but the title was in 
some way defective, how she did not un- 
derstand, but she knew that they had stead- 
9 


10 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


ily grown poorer all of the time since living 
there ; that her. father had gone heavily into 
politics but was on the losing ticket in the 
county; that after having been nominated for 
several of the public offices and having lost them 
all, he had given up in despair, and had settled 
down in utter discouragement, eking out a bare 
hand-to-mouth existence for himself and family. 
But that was not the worst of it all, the young 
girl realized with a sigh ; for the mother did 
little but revile her husband for the misfortunes 
which had overtaken the family ; and when he 
was out of the house complained about her poor 
health, doing the work in a slip-shod manner, 
until, as Kate now keenly realized, the house 
was not fit to be seen, hardly to live in. 

‘T wonder I never thought of it before,” she 
said to herself, “or why Minnie never did; but 
Minnie is so wrapped up in books that she does 
not see anything but them; and as for me, here I 
am nearly fifteen and all I know is just the horses 
and helping pa ; I do believe it is just as Mis’ 
Grimes said, that I don’t know enough to wash 
a mess of dishes. I wonder when I did such a 
thing. But any way I know I’m going to try 
and see if I can’t make things look some better.” 
She arose with the baby in her arms and started 
for the house ; her father came out hastily before 
she reached the door, and she heard her mother 
call shrilly : 

“If you had stayed in politics where you 
belonged, Andrew Ford, Kate wouldn’t of had 
such tantrums and I could do something with 
her.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


11 


“She’s been scolding about me,” muttered the 
girl; “poor pa; she doesn’t give him a minute’s 
peace night or day ; but somebody will have a 
tantrum if she doesn’t let me go ahead and do 
something to make the house look better.” 

Her mother began as soon as she entered : 
“That’s just like you, Kate, staying out to this 
time with that baby ; she’ll have the croup from 
being out in the night air. I wanted you called 
in but your father said to let you alone.” 

“The baby is all right, ma. It isn’t the first 
time she has been got to sleep out doors and she 
never had the croup yet. Got the dishes washed, 
Minnie?” 

Her sister looked up in surprise from the 
table where she sat studying. “Yes; and the 
floor swept. I wish ma would not let the chil- 
dren litter so much ; I have to clean every night, 
and I need to study all the time I can get.” 

“I am sure I couldn’t help it,” replied the 
mother fretfully. “Kate was gone and Irene 
won’t mind me at all ; and she and Bess have to 
do something to amuse themselves. I am sure 
that you older children were never half the 
trouble these younger ones are.” 

Kate went upstairs and put the baby on the 
bed ; when she came down her brother asked her 
mischievously what she meant by asking Minnie 
about the dishes. 

“Nothing, only I thought I would wash them 
myself, that’s all!” she answered coolly. Her 
words were greeted with shouts of laughter. 

'‘'‘You wash them;, why Kate Ford, I don’t 


12 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


believe you know how ! I never could get you 
to do them no matter how bad I wanted to study. 
What has come over you?” 

“Well, I’ve always had enough to do I guess, 
helping pa, without washing dishes,” the girl 
retorted, “anyway, I’ve made up my mind to 
learn. You needn’t whistle, Kirt, I’ll show you 
that I can wash dishes if I want to, just as well 
as I can saw wood with pa. Have you got 
Bessie to sleep?” 

“Yes, long ago,” the boy replied, getting up 
from the corner where he had been sitting with 
the sleeping four year old child in his arms, 
“and if the bed is ready I will put her in it, 
then go to bed myself, as I want to feel rested 
when you begin your dish-washing to-morrow.” 

“And so do I,” laughed Minnie; “it will be an 
item worth putting in the paper.” 

Kate colored angrily, and retorted hotly : “I’ll 
tell you something some of these days, Minnie 
Ford, which will open your eyes a little;” and 
bursting into tears she rushed from the room 
and flinging herself upon her bed sobbed bitterly. 

“Kate’s in another tantrum,” said the 
mother peevishly. “It seems to me that she gets 
worse and worse every day.” 

“She has something on her mind, I know well 
enough,” Minnie replied slowly. “I wonder 
what it is. Something unusual has happened or 
she would not have wanted to wash dishes.” 

“We’ll know fast enough,” rejoined Kirt; “it 
won’t be twenty-four hours before she will tell 
us. Perhaps Mrs. Ray lectured her about not 
doing any housework.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


13 


Mrs. Ford’s wrath kindled at his words. ‘‘Mrs. 
Ray, indeed ! she is a mean, meddlesome woman ; 
and I’d thank her to let my Kate alone. She 
never comes here but she tells me something I 
ought to do; just as if I did not know how to 
work as well as she does.” 

“I cannot study with this noise going on,” 
said Minnie, closing her book. “I am going to 
bed too. Good-night, Kirt, good-night, mama,” 
and without more ado she left the room, followed 
immediately by Kirt. Mrs. Ford soon followed 
their example, and a few moments later Mr. Ford 
came in, and soon this much talked about house- 
hold was asleep. 

Kate woke a little later than usual, and lay 
for a few moments looking about her, comparing 
the shabby, untidy little chamber with Mrs. 
Ray’s bedrooms. Little Irene lay sleeping sweetly 
by her side, while in Minnie’s bed, across 
the room, slept Bessie. Minnie was already down 
stairs ; and she could hear her helping about the 
breakfast. 

“It beats everything,” she thought, “that I 
never noticed how things looked before. This 
room is all topsy-turvey like the rest,” and she 
looked in disgust at the torn dusty old carpet, 
the soiled beds, the cluttered chairs, and her 
clothing and the children’s in heaps on the floor 
where they had been thrown the night before. 
There was nothing in order in the room but the 
little table in front of the bare, uncurtained win- 
dow, through w^hich a hot May sun was stream- 
ing, for the table was Minnie’s charge, and on 


14 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


it were piled her little wealth of school books 
and papers in good order, and woe to the little 
fingers when they dared disturb her treasures. 

“Minnie’s table is the only thing in order 
here,” she said aloud, as she began dressing, 
“and this room is as much mine to keep in order 
as it is hers;butl have left it for her to do, as 
I’ve had enough to do outside; but she hasn’t 
much time, in school all the time as she is, so 
Kate Ford, you’re going to put this room in or- 
der to-day and keep it so. Do you hear?” 

This latter remark she addressed to her image 
reflected in the broken looking-glass which Min- 
nie had fastened up against the logs, and pinch- 
ing herself vigorously to give further emphasis 
to the remark, she looked into Kirt’s room as 
she passed through it in going down stairs. The 
same disorder was there ; on the logs hung his 
fishing-tackle and gun, together with sundry 
traps, while on a small table at the foot of the 
bed lay his dearly beloved violin and harmonica. 
The boy lay asleep with a smile on his face. 
Kate kissed him lightly. “Dear Kirt, you are 
the only Saint in the family,” she whispered; 
then fearing he would wake she hurried down 
the stairs. 

Minnie was taking up the breakfast while her 
mother was fretfully setting the table, complain- 
ing all the time of her back. Kate responded 
quietly to Minnie’s “good morning,” and then 
telling her mother to sit down, she proceeded to 
lay the table herself, much to Minnie’s surprise, 
who asked Kate if she was sick, the reason v/hy 
she did such an extraordinary thing. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


15 


‘‘No, not sick, but I told you last night I was 
going to work, and I want to have something to 
look like other folkses tables if I can,” she an- 
swered, as she placed the plates carefully around 
the square table, and put on the knives and forks. 

“Then we’ll have to have something to eat 
like other people. Ever since your father gave 
up his politics and turned bushwhacker we have 
never had anything fit to eat. I don’t see why 
he don’t provide better. Now when I was a girl 
at home I never knew what it was not to have 
the table loaded with everything good to eat, 
and here its only salt pork and potatoes, and 
sometimes not even that ; now if your father — ” 

“Do stop!” Kate interrupted her mother an- 
grily ; “pa does just as well as he can ; he can’t 
buy things when he hasn’t anything to buy with, 
and if you would not scold all the time he would 
do better. Come Minnie, I have got the table 
set and you put on the potatoes and Johnny-cake 
and I will get the milk, then we’ll have break- 
fast.” 

Mrs. Ford took her seat, complaining , of the 
poor fare. Minnie sat down with a book in her 
lap, and ate slowly while studying her lesson. 
Kate sat by her father who ate silently, paying 
no attention to his wife’s stream of fretful words. 
Kate thought rapidly through the meal, and re- 
solved to tell her trouble to Minnie and Kirt as 
soon as they could be alone. The boy came down 
before the meal was over and took his seat si- 
lently at the table. He brought Bessie down in 
his arms and attended to her breakfast himself ; 


16 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


for the dearest love of his heart was the brown- 
eyed little girl who was his constant companion 
both out of doors and in. 

The meal over, Mrs. Ford wrapped herself in a 
shawl and sat down by the stove. Kirt, followed 
by Bessie, took his violin and went out of doors; 
Mr. Ford went to the barn, and Kate hearing 
Irene cry went up stairs to her charge, while 
Minnie began picking up the dishes. 

The little one laughed when her sister appeared, 
and Kate proceeded to dress her in the one clean 
garment she possessed. Then she looked about 
the room and sighed at its untidy appearance. 
She opened the windows, then took ofP the bed- 
clothes of the three beds to let them air, as she 
had seen Mrs. Ray do; but the feather-beds were 
full and heavy and it was a long time 
before she could beat them into any kind of 
shape. When she went downstairs, Minnie stood 
by the table dreamily washing the dishes with 
her open physiology on a pile of plates before 
her, while the dish-water trickled from the plates 
and ran in puddles on the soiled, ragged carpet. 

Kate had seen all this before many times, but 
had never fully realized it. Now she was disgust- 
ed, and placing the baby in her chair with a cup 
of milk before her,she seized a pan from the shelf, 
whisked Minnie’s book from the plates on the 
floor, slammed the plates into the pan, and 
scalded herself while pouring water from the 
tea-kettle over them. 

‘‘You ought to be ashamed, Minnie Ford, ’’she 
cried angrily, smarting with the pain of her 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


17 


burned hand, “to let the dish-water run in pud- 
dles on the floor. I am sure this old carpet is 
dirty enough already.” 

“And you ought to be ashamed too, Kate Ford, 
to slam my book on the floor this way, ’’retorted 
Minnie picking it up. “I am sure it is hard 
enough to get books without having them thrown 
around this way, and besides, if you are going 
to help with the dishes I wish you would not act 
so much like an elephant. Look out! you can’t 
wipe three plates at once. There they go!” 
as the plates dropped from the girls inexperien- 
ced fingers and fell in pieces on the floor. 

Without a word Kate bent and picked up the 
fragments while her mother scolded petulantly 
about her carelessness ; but for once she had 
nothing to say, and during the rest of the dish- 
washing she covertly watched Minnie and con- 
cluded that after all perhaps her sister knew 
more about such work than she did. When the 
last dish was put away and the table wiped dry 
she took the baby in her arms and went out 
doors. 

Kirt sat under the great hemlock 'which shaded 
the kitchen door, and softly drew the bow across 
the violin. Little Bessie stood beside him sing- 
ing in a sweet childish voice the melody which he 
played. 

He was a beauty loving child of Nature, a 
dreamer, a musician and an idler. His heart 
went out in music and thanksgiving to his Maker 
when the first white blossoms lifted their heads 
above the soil and the grass grew green in the 


18 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


meadows. He listened entranced to the song of 
the birds building their nests ; it was then that 
the sweet strains of music which floated from 
under his bow grew gay, and the soul of the mu- 
sician went out in a sweet wild chord akin to the 
song of the birds. All was beautiful in Nature 
to him, and his great dreamy eyes shone with 
love and admiration, as Spring blossomed into 
Summer, and Summer ripened into Autumn and 
Autumn faded into Winter. 

But when the Storm King raged in his fury 
and the great trees waved and tottered in the 
blast, his song changed with the elements, and as 
fiercer waved the tempest, wilder and more pa- 
thetic grew his notes, until he seemed to be playing 
the Song of the Wind ; and this was Kirt, — the 
dreamer of the forest, — an artist in his line; a 
boy w'hom few understood and whom all called 
indolent, all but Kate, who idolized her brother. 

There was no task she w’ould not undertake, 
hoping to save him from the criticism of others. 
She often wished in her heart that Kirt would 
take an interest in the work and try to help her 
father, but to hear anyone speak complainingly 
of him was harder for her to bear than to receive 
a rebuke herself ; and so she had shielded him 
from her earliest recollection ; and no one had 
ever held sway over her rebellious little heart as 
Kirt had done. He soothed the wild passions of 
her nature, and cheered her on to better endeavor. 
To her, his music was a language that spoke of 
a nobler, wider life than the narrow ignorant 
way she trod. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


19 


Minnie, seeing Kate going slowly toward Kirt 
followed her. The hoy smiled at the troubled 
look on his sister’s face, and drawing the bow 
softly across the strings, sang: 

“Speak and let the worst be known, 
Speaking may relieve you.” 

Minnie laughed but Kate burst out vehemently 
with, — 

“If that meddlesome old Mother Grimes ever 
comes here again, I shall set the dog on her.” 

Kirt said nothing, but Minnie said dryly: “So 
that’s what ails you, is it. I did not know you 
had seen her. What is it now?” 

And Kate began angrily amid a flood of tears 
and related the whole dish of gossip which had 
reached her ears. “And I would not care so 
much if she had not called you Kirt, the ‘Fid- 
dling Parson’ and said you were lazy; and then 
that about taking the children, is what almost 
drives me crazy,” she added. 

“I do not see how they could take the chil- 
dren,” her sister answered quietly, “but it is 
true enough what she said about ma’s gossiping 
and not keeping the house anyway ; but she won’t 
let me do anything, and I have tried so many 
times to fix things up,but I don’t know how and 
she won’t let me do what I do know how to 
do, and so — ” 

“I know all that,” broke in Kate, “but as I 
told you last night I am going to be housekeeper 
and do something. You’ll see.” 

“Will you wash dishes?” Minnie questioned 


20 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


slyly ; Kate opened her lips to retort angrily, but 
Kirt interposed : 

“Come, come. Show a little sense. Don’t 
quarrel even if you are mad at the neighbors. If 
we are such a set, we will have to hold together. 
Now, I suppose I am lazy, but I never see work, 
someway. And I don’t care about their calling 
me the ‘Fiddling Parson.’ I knew that before. 
The Downs’ boys do that because I would not 
go to one of their dances. Now about the chil- 
dren. That is just Mrs. Grimes’ talk, and if I 
was you, Kate, I would not say anything to the 
folks about what you have heard. It will make 
father feel bad, and as for mother, you know, — ” 

“Yes, yes, I know what you mean, Kirt. I 
won’t say anything to them, ’though I was mad 
enough to tell them anything. Now what are 
we to do first?” 

“I do not see as we can do anything,” was 
Minnie’s hopeless reply. “I can’t see what we 
can do to better our condition, until lean get to 
teaching next fall and then I can buy clothes 
and comforts for all, but now — ” 

“O ! we can’t wait a hundred years for some 
unheard of, dreamed of time to come, Minnie 
Ford, and you know what she said about your 
getting a school. But I know that I can do some- 
thing and I am going to begin to-day.” And 
Kirt sang solemnly : 

‘'Never put off till to-morrow, 

What your hands find to do to-day.” 

Kate sprang up from her seat. “Yes, that’s 
just it ; that’s just the way I feel. Now, Min- 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


21 


nie, if you andKirt will both help, we will go 
to house cleaning to-day.” 

‘‘To-day! and where shall we begin?” Minnie 
asked in surprise. 

Kate answered with an air of great superior- 
ity : “Why, first we will take up all the carpets 
and hang them on the clothes-line, then Kirt can 
get the brooms and whip them just as we saw 
the women doing the day we went to Lawrence 
Mills. You remember. Then Minnie and 1 will 
sweep up the dust and mop the floors, and then 
we will take everything out doors, all the fur- 
niture, and the dishes and the beds and the 
books and the stove and everything, and clean 
the whole house. Then we will take the win- 
dows down to the lake and wash them. If we 
work real hard we can get it all done to-day,” 
sh 3 finished positively. Minnie listened in ad- 
miration. 

“Why,how did you learn so much?” she asked. 

“O ! I do not go through the world with a book 
before my face,” she answered loftily, “and be- 
sides that is the way Mrs. Ray does. I know, 
for I have seen her, and such a little house as 
this of course we can clean in a day. Let’s begin.” 

“All right!” Minnie responded good-naturedly, 
“but you will have a dreadful time with mamma. 
She will not let us do a thing ; for she is never 
willing anything shall be changed as long as it 
will hold together. That is, all but her bed, and 
that she -turns around nearly every day; for 
papa says he never knows which side of the 
house his bed is.” 


22 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


Kate frowned, as she answered: “Leave her 
to me, Minnie, and I will be more than a match 
for her.” 

Kirt drew the bow across the strings, and sang,^ 
as he followed the girls to the house : 

“Speak gently to thy mother, 

She’s growing old you know; 

There is on earth no other, 

Whoever loved you so.” 

“I will try to hold the peace,” the girl softly 
replied, “but some one will have to beard the 
lion.” 


CHAPTER III. 


A fjarb Day’s IPork. 

Kate was something of a diplomat as well as 
a manager, so she began operations by telling 
her mother that as long as she was not able to 
do hard work, she had decided to do the 
house-cleaning herself that day with the assist- 
ance of Kirt and Minnie, who agreed with every- 
thing she said. 

But Mrs. Ford was not to be caught in that 
way. Clean house indeed ! The idea ! she 
guessed that her house was clean enough to do, 
and besides they were liable to move out any 
time, if Mr. Ford would only go into politics as 
he belonged, and she did not believe in tearing 
up everything and making a big fuss for noth- 
ing; but when Kate persisted that they were 
going to do the work, she began to .scold vehe- 
mently, and wonder why she was plagued with 
three such unmanageable children as they. She 
raised such a hubbub that Mr. Ford, who was 
tinkering on an old wagon in the shed, heard 
the noise and came in to see what the matter was. 

Kate at once appealed to him in very decided 
terms, and asked if they could not have the 
privilege of getting one room to look as well as 
23 


24 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


Mrs. Eay’s house did. Mr. Ford agreed good- 
naturedly to her plans, and the delighted girl at 
once asked him to take the stove out the first 
thing, so that they could begin work right. 

“Take the stove out !” he repeated in surprise. 
“That isn’t the way, little girl. Sister Eliza 
never did so ; and I do not believe Mrs. Eay 
does that way, either.” 

“Of course she doesn’t, Kate doesn’t know as 
much as she thinks for. And besides, we’ve got 
to bake bread to-day, and I would like to know 
how I am to do that out doors,” Minnie inter- 
posed quickly. 

“You will have to give up taking the stove 
out, Kate, but aside from that, go ahead. I’ll 
risk you. Minnie, you look out for the books. 
I will bring a packing box from the shop and 
you put them in it and take care of them. But 
don’t bother me any more about it;” and with 
this parting injunction Mr. Ford went hastily 
out to avoid the storm which he saw gathering. 

The storm burst almost immediately, for Mrs. 
Ford could not find words enough in which to 
express her indignation at the turn affairs had 
taken ; but Kate was not to be deterred from her 
plans, and went ahead as determinedly as if the 
sky had been serene. Minnie tried to pacify her 
mother but soon gave up the attempt and fol- 
lowed her sister’s lead in tearing up carpets and 
carrying out furniture. 

Soon the entire house looked as if it had been 
struck by a cyclone. The kitchen carpet, which 
originally had been a good rag one, together 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


26 


with the three bedroom carpets, soiled and faded 
ingrains, were hung on the line and whipped 
vigorously. The furniture was piled promiscu- 
ously about the door and covered with heaps of 
bedding. The books, which completely filled 
a large packing box, were packed by themselves 
with the few dishes and pans they possessed. 
Before noon there was nothing left in the house 
but the stove and Mrs. Ford’s favorite rocking 
chair, which she sat in so persistently that Kate 
could not get it to put with the rest of the fur- 
niture. 

The family made a merry dinner of milk and 
bread, sitting in any convenient place out doors; 
and as soon as the meal was over the three, be- 
gan scrubbing and cleaning ; Kirt bringing pail 
after pail of water from the lake, while the girls 
scrubbed the rough floors in a manner which 
would have astonished most house-keepers. How- 
ever, their zeal and Kate’s muscle atoned for 
their lack of skill, and they had the satisfaction 
of having thoroughly cleaned the floors. 

Then Kirt and Minnie carried the windows to 
the lake, across the road from the house, to wash 
them. All went well until Minnie walked out 
on a slippery log which lay from the shore into 
the clearer water. The splashing water against 
her feet bewildered her,and missing her hold upon 
the window she slipped from the log and went 
down into the soft mud up to her waist. Kirt 
had gone to the house with the windows already 
washed and there was no one to help her. 

She screamed desperately and struggled with 


26 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


all her might, but of no use. The water was 
scarcely two feet deep, but she had slipped into 
the most treacherous part of the lake, and in 
spite of her efforts she felt herself slowly sink- 
ing deeper and deeper into the mud until it had 
nearly reached her shoulders ; but before Kirt, 
who had heard her screams, could make out 
whether it was Carlo’s howling or some one 
calling for help, Kate, who was scrubbing the 
log walls of her bedroom, heard the shrieks, and 
rushing down the rickety stairs, upsetting a 
pail of dirty water in her haste, she ran from 
the house to the lake, followed by Kirt, Bess, 
Irene and the dog. It took her but an instant 
to know what to do. Leaping upon the log, she 
steadied herself, and grasping Minnie by the 
shoulders held her up from the mud until Kirt 
and her father, who had also hastened to the 
scene, could rescue the girl from her perilous po- 
sition; who, when at last upon the dry land, 
presented a most deplorable appearance with 
the mud dripping from her dress, and the dozen 
or more leeches which had fastened themselves 
upon her limbs still clinging to her body. Kate 
sank to the ground in paroxysms of laughter 
while Minnie danced frantically around until 
Kirt pulled them off. Then she ran to the 
house while Kate finished washing the windows 
and carried them back to the house to dry. 

So intent had they been with their work that 
none of them had noticed the dark clouds which 
had been gathering since noon, until the sky 
suddenly darkened overhead and an ominous 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


27 


roll of thunder told them that the storm was 
upon them. 

All hands rushed to save the bedding and 
clothing from getting wet, but before the win- 
dows could be put in the wind raised and the 
rain came down in sheets ; coming the strongest 
from the north, on which side there were three 
windows out, and driving in gusts across the 
floor, causing the helpless family to hide behind 
anything and everything which promised shel- 
ter. 

The books outside were well protected, but 
the furniture and a good share of the bedding 
were thoroughly drenched by the storm, which 
increased rapidly in fury, subduing and aweing 
even Kate, who w^as disposed to inake merry over 
their troubles in contrast to her mother’s com- 
plaining, who, crouched on a feather bed in the 
most protected corner, alternately cried from fear 
or scolded her husband for letting the children 
do such a foolish caper. 

Bessie clung to her father and cried, while 
Kate comforted the baby. Minnie tried to 
soothe her mother, while Kirt took his violin, 
and standing where he could see the flame-riven 
heavens, played as he never had played before. 

The day had been very hot for that season of 
the year, and the storm was terrible in its fury. 
Through the open windows they could see the 
foam-lashed waters of the little lake, the forest 
trees waving and bending in the blast which 
swept over them, the murky clouds rent with 
the vivid flashes of forked lightning, and the 


28 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


tremendous clashing of the elements which ren- 
dered conversation impossible. All of this had 
a charm for Kirt. He smiled as he drew the 
bow across the strings, and as the clouds rolled 
southward and the rain ceased falling he sang: 

“Glory to the Father, and to the Son 
And to the Holy Ghost 

Amen.” 

Kate dashed away a tear as she said to Minnie, 
“See how good Kirt is. He is not afraid of any- 
thing, and I would not be either if I was good 
like him. He is always praising God, in sun- 
shine or in storm ; in trouble or in pleasure he 
still praises Him; while I do nothing but just 
fret and scold, and whenever there is any dan- 
ger I am afraid. Now if Kirt should be struck 
by lightning he would go right to heaven sing- 
ing, and when he got there the angels would 
not have to give him a new song.” 

Minnie smiled as she replied gently : 

“If every one was as good as Kirt how happy 
the world would be;” but these words falling 
on her mother’s ear were keenly resented and 
she exclaimed as she emerged from her corner : 

“I think, Kate, you had better think about be- 
ing good and minding your mother after this, 
and not turning everything topsy-turvy and 
out doors. Now we haven’t got a dry chair or 
a bed in the house, and those carpets are ruined, 
and will never be fit to be put down again.” 

“I hope not, ” Kate exclaimed angrily. “If 
I can have my way I shall never have a carpet 
put down on the kitchen again. Never! No 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


29 


good housekeepers do; Mrs. Ray doesn’t. It is 
just dreadfully ragged and greasy, and after 
this I shall mop the floor every day if necessary 
and keep it clean. Now, pa, if you will put the 
windows in I will mop up again for there are 
puddles in every room where the rain beat in. 
But what shall we do about the carpets and bed- 
ding? They will never get dry to-night, as it is 
four o’clock already.” 

“Why, do the best you can. The sun has come 
out now, and you have two more hours of sun- 
shine. Get enough dry to sleep on anyway, and 
next time — ” 

“Next time do as I do,” the mother interrup- 
ted ; “when I clean house I never stir up but one 
room at a time and clean that well, and then — ” 

“And then — ” Kate broke in tartly, “you half 
clean that one and never touch the rest, so we 
live in the dirt all the time. Now when we came 
here,” she went on recklessly, “we had better 
furniture and things than any one else in the 
neighborhood; and now there isn’t a decent 
thing on the premises or in the house. Every 
carpet we had is worn into rags, and now I am 
going to take what is left and put them away 
until I know enough to make rugs out of them, 
such as Mrs. Ray makes.” 

“Kate, child, stop!” Mr. Ford spoke sternly. 
“Do not talk that way to your mother. Go ahead 
and do the best you can and I will be with you, 
if you speak civilly to your mother. You’ve got 
your mother in hysterics already and you ought 
to know better.” 


30 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


Kate crimsoned. She felt her father’s rebuke 
keenly, and during the rest of the day tried to 
hold her tongue, though aggravated and disheart- 
ened over the wet bedding and furniture which 
had completely spoiled her cherished plans of 
finishing all the house cleaning that day. 

The windows were put back, and the beds 
brought in and spread with all the dry bedding 
they could command, but though they worked 
until late the house was very far from being 
in order when, worn out, they crept to bed to get 
their hard-earned rest. 

Kate had learned one lesson ; that while it is 
very easy to stir up a house it is another mat- 
ter to put it in order quickly, and she sorrowfully 
reflected that after all perhaps she had not done 
just as Mrs. Kay would have done. 


CHAPTER IV. 


Kate’s Criats. 

Sunday dawned bright and clear ; the little 
household woke later than usual for all were 
tired ; even Kate’s muscles were lame from her 
hard labors of the previous day, and Minnie de- 
clared herself too lame to walk around comfor- 
tably. 

Kate surveyed her labors with considerable sat- 
isfaction, notwithstanding that they had been 
unable to get more than a few blankets dry the 
night before, while the rest of their bedding and 
carpets had all to be taken out doors and placed 
in the sun to dry. But there was no dust in the 
four rooms and the pantry shelves were spotlessly 
clean, as well as their few dishes placed in order 
upon them, so she congratulated herself again 
on her endeavors and resolved to get everything 
to rights the following day. 

The simple breakfast was soon over with and 
Kate washed the dishes herself, leaving Minnie 
to arrange the books in order again. There was 
no thought of going to church. Mr. Ford had 
never been a church going man and his wife was 
bitterly opposed to any denomination but her 
own; the children, through Mrs. Ray’s influence, 
31 


32 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


had gone to the Sunday School held in the- 
school house as long as their decent clothes had 
lasted, but that had long since been given up 
and no amount of coaxing or advice had ever 
persuaded them to go there since. 

Mrs. Ford had one boon companion, Mrs. 
Downs, a woman whom the children detested 
beyond measure ;one who under a show of friend- 
ship for Mrs. Ford, succeeded in finding out all 
of their family afiairs, and then published her 
news broadcast to the neighborhood. She was a 
devout Free Methodist and when about ten 
o’clock she came in to spend the day Kate was 
in despair. 

“Never mind,” said Minnie consolingly, “we- 
can’t help her coming, nor we can’t prevent her 
talking, but I am glad that she can see that we 
have a clean house even if we are all topsy- 
turvy. I’ll keep the bed room door shut so that 
she can’t see me arranging these books in the 
cupboard and lecture me on my wickedness.” 

“Yes, but she will lecture, you see, because 
the feather beds and blankets are out on the line 
and the carpets too. I’m going out there to hear 
what she says. I’d be glad to order her out of 
the house if I could. She’ll preach and gossip, 
then she’ll go away and lie about us, but the 
worst of it all is that she sets ma on so ; but I 
won’t give her a chance to find out pa’s business 
to-day.” 

Mrs. Downs was comfortably seated in Mrs. 
Ford’s rocking chair, and surveying the premises 
when Kate entered the room. Without noticing 
the girl she went on talking : 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


33 


“I jest thought I’d come over and spend the 
day with you, Mis’ Ford, as long as it is Sunday 
and there is no meetings for us to go to herein 
this old God forsaken country; and I said to 
John, says I, T’ll go over and chirk Mis’ Ford 
up a bit to-day.’ I don’t believe in going to 
worldly churches. I suppose the Baptists hold 
meetin’s yet in the school house, but I never go 
there. They don’t preach the Truth, and land 
knows ! I can’t go where it is nothin’ but a dress 
parade. They jest go there to show their clothes, 
their rutiles and feathers, and tine dresses and 
golden ornaments which will some day be all 
cast into the lake which burns with tire and brim- 
stone forever. They don’t even pretend to be 
perfect, them Baptists don’t, and I reckon it is 
jest as well for there aint a real good one among 
them. Now there’s Mis’ Ray, she’s alius frettin’ 
an’ scoldin’ about her neighbors, and mindin’ 
everybody’s business but her own; and a 
Baptist, and as for Mr. Ray, whenever he comes 
into our house, he always spies around and goes 
home and tells Lucy, his wife, jest how every 
thing looks; and still you’d think from the looks 
of his face that he is a Saint or suthin’ else,even 
though he wears gold cuff buttons. But I alius 
enjoy cornin’ over here and talkin’ over old times 
with you and the meetin’s we used to have 
when we lived out in the world. I used to go 
to every meetin’ and get religion every time I 
went. Now, I used to have some lovely times 
out East a ’goin’ to funerals, but there haint 
been a funeral in this towm in a year except 


34 


KATE FORD'S FAMILY 


among the Catholics. But I want to tell you 
Mis’ Ford, I never could get along with my fam- 
ily if I wasn’t a Christian. Now them boys air 
jest like their father, an’ they will go to dances 
an’ cut up all the time;but I have lived without 
sin so long that it is a part of my nature to bear 
up under all trials. But I often think of you, 
Mis’ Ford, with that big girl a growin’ up. That 
Kate! She’s jest as bad as my Peter; jest as 
headstrong. Now I can’t do a thing with him, 
but he is a boy, and boys alius come out right ; 
but girls ! Well it’s no use I s’pose to talk about 
that. You’ve been cleanin’ house, haven’t you^ 
I saw all the things out doors, an’ I feel it my 
boundin’ dooty. Mis’ Ford, to remonstrate with 
you on your sinfulness in leavin’ sech things out 
doors on the Sabbath, but I thought perhaps it 
was your children’s doings and you could not 
help it.” Here the worthy woman paused for 
want of breath, and Mrs. Ford took occasion to 
pour into her sympathetic listener’s ear the 
tale of her sorrows of yesterday; not hesitating 
to lay all the blame on Kate, who was upheld by 
her husband in whatever she tried to do, she de- 
clared with a burst of tears. 

“That is jest it,” broke in Mrs. Downs, “you 
are run over by that understrapper all the time. 
She ought to go to the House of Correction. Mis’ 
Grimes was in to see me yist’aday an’ she told 
me how Kate sassed her at Mis’ Ray’s Friday, 
and Mis’ Grimes an’ I both say she ought to go 
to the House of Correction.” 

Kate sprang from her corner at the last re- 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


85 


mark, the fire snapping from her black eyes. 
‘‘And you had better go home and mind your 
own business,” she cried, “and if I had the right 
I’d send you out too.” 

“Oh, child!” and Mrs. Ford |began to cry, 
“you are such a trial to your mother. And to 
think that I had you baptized when you were 
six weeks old, and now when you are old enough 
to be ‘taken in’ that you should be going straight 
to Perdition.” 

“Perdition, or no Perdition,” the girl angrily 
retorted, “I’d a hundred times rather go there 
than have to live in the same place with you, 
Mis’ Downs, and I wish you would go home and 
never come here again. I mean what I say too.” 

Mrs. Downs, who was without sin, serenely 
took no notice of the girl’s outburst, but said sol- 
emnly : 

“I sometimes think how much better it would 
have been if some children,” this with a signifi- 
cant glance at Kate, “had only died when they 
were little. Then they would surely have been 
saved if they had been baptized, but when they 
grow up headstrong and saucy there is no tell- 
ing.” 

Mrs. Ford assented with a deep sigh, glancing 
at her daughter who sat glowering in a corner. 
“Now there’s my children. Minnie is never 
saucy, but she cares nothing for rebgion and will 
never read one of my books ; and Kirt, as I tell 
his father, who only laughs at me, that he will 
lose his sbul on that old fiddle, for that is all he 
cares about. I don’t see what makes him so for I 


36 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


never cared anything for a fiddle myself. I think 
they are positively wicked, but he will let the boy 
have that to saw on ; and he won’t sing one of 
my hymns anyway. And Kate, she cares nothing 
for me or for the Methodists either. Now I know I 
am sanctified fori haven’t worn a feather or a 
flounce in years ; but Mrs. Downs aint you sorry 
you had so many children? now I am. I never 
wanted more than one, for that just makes a gen- 
tleman’s family. I was an only child, and I al- 
ways had everything I wanted, and since then 
I’ve had to slave for a big family. I think it is 
a dreadful thing to bring children into the world. 
We can care for their bodies but not for their 
souls ; and it breaks my heart to think when I 
reach that happy home that I won’t have any of 
my children with me, for there aint a Methodist 
but me among them ; for there aint no way of 
gettin’ to that better land unless you mortify the 
flesh and go without feathers and fine clothing and 
golden ornaments, as you have often said Mis’ 
Downs, and I feel sure that if I was called to-night 
I should be ready ; but Kate, she is surely doomed 
to Perdition, and my little children, how can I 
bring ’em up right, with her to influence them 
and Mr. Ford, who since he’s turned bushwhacker 
and left politics alone, won’t do anything I want 
him too, jest lets her do as she pleases, and there 
is no Free Methodist meetin’s here as there was 
in Pennsylvany, and I don’t have no Christian 
s’ciety here at all but you,” and Mrs. Ford 
wiped her e^ es on her apron while her visitor 
sniffed sympathetically. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


37 


Kate sprang up in disgust, and muttering 
something about people staying where they were 
not wanted, bounced out doors and went for 
Kirt, who was sitting with Bessie under the hem- 
lock. 

“Mis’ Downs and ma have been holdin’ a 
conference and taking me for a convert.” she 
exclaimed wdckedly. 

Kirt looked at her with a pained expression 
in his eyes, and raising his violin to his shoulder 
sang dreamily ; 

“And shall I be to judgment brought, 

And answer in that day, 

For every vain and idle thought 
And every word I say.” 

Kate turned away with tears in her eyes. 
Kirt had touched her heart again and had soft- 
ened the callousness to religion made by her 
mother’s mistaken but well meant words. ‘ ‘Why 
should I be so bad,” she thought “and Kirt so 
good? I guess it is as ma says, that I was born 
bad; but I know 1 could be better if Mis’ Downs 
would never come here.” 

Mrs. Downs having stayed until she was hun- 
gry and seeing no prospect for dinner, as neither 
Mrs. Ford nor the girls felt any inclination to let 
her see the scantiness of their larder, went 
away, having obtained a choice supply of fresh 
gossip for the coming week; she having found out 
through Mrs. Ford that Mr. Ford had not made 
any preparations for a garden and that he did 
not intend to, as he expected to leave any time. 
The latter expression was a standing joke in the 


88 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


neighborhood, as he had been intending to leave- 
immediately for five years, and the whole com- 
munity knew that he had no means even to pro- 
vide for his family. 

Kate was so delighted at having Mrs. Downs 
leave that she was good natured during the din- 
ner, and Mrs. Ford having relieved herself of 
her troubles to her bosom friend was less fretful 
than usual. 

Dinner over, Kirt and Bessie went out on the 
lake in the old dug-out canoe, and with his violin 
whiled away the hours. Minnie took a book 
and went to her room. Mrs. Ford went to bed 
and Mr. Ford taking one of his cherished politi- 
cal works under his arm went out into the w^oods 
to read undisturbed. Kate and Irene alone 
seemed to have no occupation. The baby was 
terribly afraid of the water, and the older sister 
would go no place where she could not take her 
pet ; so she wandered aimlessly around, gather- 
ing flowers and building tiny houses of sticks for 
the baby’s amusement, or else drawing pictures 
in the sand with a stick, for the little one to 
imitate. At last she wandered to her father, 
who sat silently reading. She stood and looked 
at him for a few moments, her heart full of pity 
as she thought of his capabilities and how he 
had wasted his life, and she wondered bitterly 
if her mother would only encourage him if he 
would not yet do better. 

He noticed her approach at last. “Sit down^ 
Kate,” he said gently, “I want to talk with you. 
You have made a good beginning at your house 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


39 


cleaning, and I want you to go on with it and 
be housekeeper and see if we can’t have a decent 
home. Ever since my sister Eliza died, my house 
has gone from worse to worse. Your mother was 
never taught to work at home, or to have any 
responsibility, as her poor health was always an 
excuse. It did not matter so much while Eliza 
was with us, as she was very capable and a 
manager like you. I would be glad to go into 
politics again but there is no use, for no one would 
vote for a man whose house looks like mine.” 

Kate saw her father in a new light. She 
realized that he let circumstances weigh him 
down instead of rising above them ; that he was 
utterly discouraged, and instead of realizing 
where his share in their trouble lay, was dis- 
posed not to see his owm mismanagement, or his 
own Weakness in yielding to his wife’s sugges- 
tions, which had always proved disastrous ; but 
had given up weakly in order to keep the peace, 
acting in direct defiance to his better judgment 
many times. And so they had drifted from com- 
fortable circumstances into poverty, and he had 
sunk helpless, waiting for something to ‘‘turn 
up” like Micawbei, and laying all the blame on 
his wife’s housekeeping, while she lay all the 
blame on him for not staying in politics where 
he belonged. 

In her untrained mind the girl formed plans 
for bettering their condition and resolved to do 
all that she could do to help in housekeeping ; 
while her father talked of his plans, saying that 
he had formulated a new tariff schedule, which 


40 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


he was sure that he could perfect and which 
would give him wealth and fame, and in the 
meantime he would not bother about crops or 
much of a garden as it would be no use as he 
should leave there in a very few weeks. 

The girl was never saucy to her father. She 
had abundant faith in him and his plans although 
they had never matured, but she did wish he 
would not be so visionary but more practical 
and do something to relieve their present neces- 
sities. Nevertheless she meant to do what she 
could to help, and if Minnie got to teaching per- 
haps all would yet be well. 


CHAPTER V. 


IHrs. (Braces’ Disit. 

Monday morning and Minnie trudged away to 
the little school house two miles distant, while 
Kate endeavored to finish the house-cleaning. 
She was determined that the dirty, ragged car- 
pets should not be put down again, and after a 
stormy scene with her mother, she carried her 
point at last, and her father carried them to the 
lake and fastening them securely allowed them 
to float in the water until they were effectually 
cleansed. 

The most dilapidated pieces of furniture, 
which she knew from past experience would 
never be mended, she stow^ed wdth former wrecks 
in the shed, and arranged the rest to her liking; 
having the satisfaction when night came that 
everything was clean at last and in good order, 
and she contemplated an easy task in keeping 
it so ; but before the week was over she learned, 
poor child, that while nearly any kind of house- 
keeper can put things to rights, it takes a good 
housekeeper to keep them so. 

The week was one continual warfare between 
herself and the other members of the family. 
Every one had slovenly habits, throwing articles 
41 


42 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


down when used, and putting nothing away in 
its place. Kate kept a strict watch over herself 
and the rest, so much so that she instituted a 
marked improvement with everyone but her 
mother and the baby. Her father laughed at 
her stormings, but was careful to hang up his 
hat and coat, and put his books and papers back 
in the book-cupboard after using them. Minnie 
seconded her efPorts when there although keenly 
resenting Kate’s tone of authority and air of 
superior neatness. Kirt, who never liked disor- 
der or sharp speeches, fled the house, followed 
by little Bessie, who tired of Kate’s shrill voice 
calling : ‘‘Bess, pick up your bonnet and hang it 
on the nail, and don’t you bring any more sand 
in this house never, etc.,” fled in despair to 
Kirt under the hemlock and never ventured in 
except at meal time or night unless driven in by 
the weather, and then she crept about like a little 
mouse fearing to arouse the sleeping cat, and 
took shelter in either her father’s arms or be- 
hind her brother’s chair. 

But not so with Irene ; her fiery little spirit 
was fully equal to Kate’s and stoutly she rebelled 
against her authority and discipline ; but Kate 
was equal to the emergency and endeavored to 
enforce her rule by words, and when that failed, 
by slight punishments ; but all this had little 
elfect upon the rebellious two year old; then she 
tried spanking the little tyrant, and tying the 
mischievous hands behind her ; but through all 
of these punishments it was harder to say which 
suffered the most, Kate or the baby ; for Kate 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


43 


loved the little one, next to Kirt, above every- 
thing earthly, but as she grimly expressed it to 
Minnie : 

“I shall be to blame if Irene grows up such an 
ignoramus as her sisters have. Ma never 
thought it was a sin to fret and scold at us all 
the time, but whipping was a different thing, 
and there isn’t one of us ever minded her in our 
lives, or anyone else since Aunt Eliza died. 
Now I am going to teach myself to mind, and 
make Irene mind ; she has got to grow up know- 
ing something if I have to whip her every day.” 
But in spite of the punishments the wilful little 
fingers persisted in tearing down and littering, 
despite Kate’s determined endeavors to keep the 
little cabin in ‘‘perfect order.” 

Tuesday she went to washing in spite of her 
mother’s remonstrances. She declared that she 
was not going to have the washing stand around 
a whole week waiting for her mother to finish 
it, but that she was going to do it herself in the 
future. She calmly ignored all advice her 
mother gave, and went at it in her own headlong 
fashion. There was no boiler, so an old kettle 
was pressed into the service ; and into this she 
recklessly dumped the clothes as fast as they 
were washed; white clothes, dresses, stockings, no 
matter what, all took their turn in the old kettle, 
and after a vigorous sudsing were hung in any 
fashion on the line ; for the girl was absolutely 
ignorant of washing, believing that hot water, 
muscle and soap were all that were necessary ; 
and although the Ford washing had never been 


44 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


noted for its elegant appearance, yet the girl 
knew that it had never looked so bad before ; 
and in the depths of her ignorant independent 
spirit, she wondered where the trouble lay. No 
laundress had ever worked harder she knew, for 
she had skinned nearly every knuckle with her 
vigorous rubbing, besides wetting herself to the 
skin ; while the slop on the floor around the tub 
eflPectually wetted the feet of everyone who ven- 
tured near it. No one enjoyed that washing but 
Irene, who found unlimited mischief to do, her 
sister being too busy to pay much attention 
to her. 

Mrs. Ray came over that afternoon and took in 
the situation at a glance, but much to Kate’s 
relief she made no criticism of her work but told 
her to go ahead. She said that she should not 
wash until Friday as her boiler was away being 
repaired, and the girl resolved to watch her at 
her work and learn to do better. 

The ironing was no better, and she sighed dis- 
consolately at the wrinkles she had ironed into 
every garment, as she sat Saturday evening on 
the doorstep with Irene in her arms, thinking 
over the week. She was the only one who had 
done anything, with the exception of Minnie, 
who had studied hard in school. Her father 
and Kirt had dreamed away the hours as usual. 
The day before, with Irene in her arms, as she 
had strongly objected to being left behind, she 
had presented herself at Mrs. Ray’s kitchen 
door, and had watched her wash, offering to 
help her occasionally, and Mrs. Ray, suspecting 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


46 


the girl’s reasons, had shown her how to wring, 
and had instructed her in the hundred and one 
little points which every good washer-woman 
knows, and the girl had gone away determined 
to profit by what she had learned. 

She thought of her many failures and her 
brave heart sank at the prospect of ever making 
her home look like Mrs. Ray’s tidy house. She 
had made fruitless attempts at mending and 
darning also during the week, but the rents she 
had mended really looked worse than if she had 
let them alone. “If I had only some one to teach 
me to work,” she thought regretfully, “but 
never mind, I have done my best and every thing 
is clean, even if the whole family have been made 
mad at me ; and I have nearly broken my back and 
skinned my knuckles too ; and have had to Avhip 
Irene sixty times or more for her naughty ways.” 

She stroked the little head resting in her lap, 
and played with the tiny baby fingers. The child 
smiled up in her face, her»bright eyes gleaming 
with love and beauty. Kate clasped her tighter 
in her arms and kissed her again and again, 
while her heart swelled with love and pain, while 
some strange dread of coming evil tugged at her 
heart strings, and she covered her eyes with the 
baby’s wee hands trying to hide the tears which 
pressed against her eye-lids. 

“Life would not be worth much to me without 
you. Queen Irene,” she said softl}', “your big 
untrained sister loves you too well to see you 
grow up as big a fool as she is, and she is going 
to make you mind. Miss Baby, if it takes all 
summer.” 


46 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


The child cooed and stroked her sister’s cheek 
and then throwing her arms about her neck 
hugged and kissed her with all her baby love. 
Kate had been so intently wrapped up in her 
own thoughts and with the baby that she had 
not noticed the carriage which had stopped in 
front of the house nor the approach of a gentle- 
man and lady, until an ominous growl from Car- 
lo as he trotted around the house caused her to 
look up quickly, and putting the child down 
she rose to greet the strangers. 

“Does Mr. Ford live here?” the lady asked 
pleasantly. 

Kate answered in the affirmative as she led 
the way into the house and seated her guests on 
the lounge. She feared, she knew not w’hat, and 
she wished her father was there. Minnie sat at 
the table solving problems; Kirt in the farther 
corner was fashioning a small trap with Bessie 
by his side. Mrs. Ford satin her rocking chair 
by the stove, and Kate paused at the door. 

There was a pause for a moment ; an eternity 
it seemed to Kate, who remembered what she had 
heard'Mrs. Grimes say. Then the lady spoke: 

“Is your father at home? We wish to see him.” 

“He is somewhere around, he will be here 
soon,” Kate replied, her voice choking, but she 
kept her eyes on the lady^s face while she tight- 
ened her grasp on Irene. 

“And this is Mrs. Ford, ” the lady continued 
pleasantly. “I am Mrs. Graves, of the Leslie 
Home, and this is my husband. I understand,” 
she went on rapidly, “that you have very poor 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


47 


health. It must be very hard for you to care for 
these small children, and then you seem to have 
a large family too.” 

‘‘Yes,” responded Mrs. Ford, and her voice 
sounded very weak and pious , the tone which 
always nettled her children. “I have a large 
family and a hard one too for a sick woman to 
manage, but I am sure the Lord helps me to bear 
my burdens.” 

“As I said,” resumedMrs. Graves, “I repre- 
sent the Leslie Home for children, and as we 
were informed of your physical condition we 
came to see you, as we thought it would be a 
good thing for you and them to take them with 
us to the Home. I have some pictures of the 
place here with me. See what a beautiful place 
it is,” and taking some pictures from her hus- 
band, she handed them to Mrs. Ford who took 
them mechanically. “This is the Home building 
proper, and this is the chapel — ” 

“And is it Free Methodist?” Mrs. Ford inter- 
rupted eagerly. 

“Not Free, but an M. E. Institution,” the 
lady answered. 

“But that is better than if it was Baptist or 
something else, though not as good as the Free,” 
assented Mrs. Ford. “My little children have 
never been baptized, and it haunts me day and 
night to think of their little souls going to perdi- 
tion.” 

“We would have them baptized if you wish 
it ; and they would grow up surrounded by all 
that is good and beautiful,” assented the lady. 


48 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


“I would be glad to have the children go 
anywhere where they would grow up good Meth- 
odists. I wush I was a child so I could go too,’^ 
the mother answered. 

Mrs. Graves was highly pleased with her suc- 
cess, and began speaking with her husband about 
removing the children, but she never finished 
her sentence, for Kate exclaimed excitedly: 

“For Heaven’s sake,ma, what are you saying? 
What do you mean? Don’t you know that they 
want to take our children away from us where 
we will never see them again, because they think 
we can’t take care of them ! ” 

The girl was trembling with agitation. Her 
masses of red-brown hair tossed back from her 
face which had turned to marble whiteness ; her 
lips were drawn and white and her eyes of un- 
natural brightness as she faced the lady', still 
clasping the baby to her breast, who clung to 
her neck and watched the strangers with terror 
written on her little face ; but when her glance 
rested on her sister's face her eyes filled with 
tears and sob after sob shook the tiny frame. 

This was too much for Kate, and turning upon 
Mrs. Graves she asked in a voice that thrilled 
and vibrated with pain : “Mrs. Graves, are you 
a mother?” 

“Yes : I have three,” she answered in surprise. 

“Then tell me how you would feel for me to 
come to your house and in the name of the law 
snatch them away from you and carry them 
away?” 

“But you are not the children’s mother!” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


49 


“No: but I might as well be,” the girl sadly 
replied, “for I have given her nearly all the care 
she ever had. I have stayed out of school and 
cared for her by night and by day, and Kirt has 
done the same by Bessie.” 

But Kirt was gone. At the first mention of 
the Home, he had sprung out of the window, 
and with Bessie in his arms had disappeared. 
The girl noticed his absence with relief. Minnie 
was crying bitterly, but without a pause Kate 
went on: 

“Ma has no right to tell you that you can 
have the children. She doesn't know anything 
but to be a good Methodist, and I am the house- 
keeper here. You would have no right to the 
children unless pa said so ; and I wish he would 
come.” 

Mrs. Graves had noticed the spotless floor, 
clean lounge-cover, blackened stove, and the few 
dishes shining in purity, piled orderly on the 
table. The children were neatly clothed though 
very poorly and the same could be said of all. 
Everywhere was manifested poverty but every- 
thing was neat. 

Mr. Ford entered the house at that moment, and 
Mrs. Graves tried to explain her errand to him, 
and to win his consent as well as his wife’s, but 
she quite failed in her undertaking. The bronze 
face of the man grew lividly white, and as he 
reached for a chair his step faltered. He real- 
ized keenly what it would be for all with the 
little ones gone. He had met Kirt, running from 
the house with Bessie in his arms, but the boy 


50 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


had told him nothing ; and in the brief moment 
following Mrs. Graves’ explanation of her er- 
rand, he lived a lifetime of misery such as he 
had never experienced before. Mrs. Graves saw 
the effect her words had produced and her moth- 
er heart was stirred with pity, as he bowed his 
head on his hands in agony. All was still for a 
moment and Minnie hushed her sobbings as she 
saw her father’s agony. At last he spoke in a 
low constrained voice : 

‘‘Mrs. Graves, who sent you here?” 

“I came in behalf of the Home which looks 
after and cares for destitute children.” 

“But who complained to you regarding my 
children?’ ’ 

The lady hesitated and then answered gently : 
“The letter was written by one of your neigh- 
bors, who requested that her name should not be 
mentioned.” 

“And is that the way you do business?” his 
eyes blazing. “Why will you take the word of 
one who is ashamed to have her or his name 
mentioned, before the overwhelming love of a 
father, and deprive him of his family, his dear- 
est source of happiness.^ I am poor, but who 
ever dared to say I have abused my family — 
that I have ever wasted my means — or have 
failed to do my duty by them as far as my in- 
come allowed me? Luck has been against me 
ever since 1 came here, but I am preparing to 
leave very soon.’^ 

“That is just it,” broke in his wife, raising 
her voice at every word; “if you had stayed in 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


61 


politics as you ought to, and back in Pennysl- 
vany as you belonged , and had never dragged 
your wife and family out here in the woods as 
bushwhackers, Andrew Ford, we wouldn’t ’a come 
to this. It is God’s judgment upon you and 
you will never prosper until you take your folks 
back to Pennsylvany, where they can go to 
meetin’ and get religion, as Mis’ Downs says.” 

Mr. Ford, paying no attention to the excited 
woman’s harangue continued speaking to the 
lady : 

‘"The children have never suffered for the ne- 
cessities of life. We have a cow, and we always 
have enough such as it is. I have done the best 
I could, but as I say, luck is against me.” 

“And it serves you right!” almost shrieked 
his wife, as she relapsed into a wild fit of weep- 
ing and scolding, which Mr. Ford tried in vain 
to check. 

Mrs. Graves looked helplessly on. She saw it 
all. A smart man crippled by an unaccount- 
able wife ; a woman of no mind or judgment, 
but who had power to sway her husband in many 
ways. She knew that the children would be 
better off away from her^ but to take them from 
the father and Kate would be an act which only 
an extreme case could warrant. 

She looked from one to the other. Kate, stern 
and defiant, with the bright ungovernable child 
in her arms ; the weeping hysterical wife,— the 
discouraged husband trying to soothe her with 
gentle words, and Minnie, sitting the picture of 
despair at the table. The girl attracted her. 


52 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


and looking at her quiet tear-stained face, she 
saw what few had ever noticed; an energetic 
studious girl capable of grasping and doing great 
things if the occasion offered; a girl of great 
perseverance and earnestness of purpose, one 
with whom she could talk reasonably. 

Leaving the room she beckoned the girls to 
follow her to the carriage. They went silently 
and neither spoke for several moments, then she 
addressed Minnie : 

“Miss Ford, what do you intend to do? what 
is your aim in life?” 

The girl looked up in surprise. “I intend to 
be a teacher. I shall take the examination in 
August, and after that I shall teach. If I can 
once get a school I shall be all right, and can 
then help to provide. Kate takes care of 
the house now and she is like a mother to us 
all.” 

The lady smiled down into the grief- stricken 
face of the young housekeeper, and gently stroked 
the baby’s soft silken hair. “Be a good little 
mother, Kate, and I promise you that we will not 
take the children away to-night. 1 am sorry that 
we came, hut we were informed that you were 
in very needy circumstances, so much so that 
the children lacked both food and clothing, also 
that your home was not a suitable place in which 
to bring up the children. We were authorized 
to come and see them and take them if we deemed 
advisable to do so ; but I have decided to leave 
them without further action until the first of 
November, when we will come again, and if you 


KATE FORD’S F^AMILY 


63 


are not in better circumstances than you were 
last winter we shall have to take them then.” 

Minnie answered bravely: “I know that we 
are very poor, Mrs. Graves, and that we have 
but very little to wear, and not much to eat, but 
we have never starved yet, and the children are 
never sick. Give us one more trial. I am sure 
that I can pass the examination, for I have stud- 
ied so hard, and teachers are always wanted, 
and then I can help so much ; and I know papa 
will do something besides read, now he is wakened 
up, and Kate and Kirt will help ; and oh ! Mrs. 
Graves, it would kill papa I know if you should 
take the children.” 

“You poor girls,” and Mrs. Graves k^'soed 
each one tenderly. ‘T am very sorry f(»r von. 
Your case was misrepresented to us in some 
ways. I see that your mother is scarcely better 
than a child, but do the best you can, and I be- 
lieve you will come out all right.” Her husband 
came out to the carriage saying that the woman 
was in hysterics, and”bidding the girls good-night 
they drove away in the fast gathering darkness. 

Thankful that their darlings were safe for a 
time at least, they returned to the house. Mr. 
Ford succeeded in coaxing his wife into good hu- 
mor again, and induced her to go to bed, for she 
was vehement in her denouncings of Mrs. Graves, 
whom she declared had come there through the 
instrumentality of Mrs. Ray; but the others 
thought differently, believing that either Mrs. 
Grimes or Mrs. Downs had written the letter. 

The three sat silently by the stove thinking 


54 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


deeply until about nine, when Kirt silently en- 
tered with the sleeping Bessie wrapped in his 
coat. He carried her up to her bed, and then sat 
down with the rest, while Kate told him the 
story. He made no comment, but when she 
ceased speaking, he turned to his father and 
said: 

“Father, you can peel at least two loads of tan- 
bark this season. It is in prime condition, for 
I have been through there to see. It is ready 
now, and Kate and I will get in the crops. We 
must all do something besides thinking this 
summer.” 

Everyone looked at him in surprise, but there 
was a new light in his eyes, and something in 
his determined voice which proved to be just the 
tonic his father needed ; for throwing aside his 
lethargy, he answered with more vigor than he 
was ever known to express before unless engaged 
in an argument: 

“All right, my boy. We will all do our best 
this summer, and when fall dawns we will leave,, 
and leave for good.” 


CHAPTER VI. 


earnest enbeanors. 

Sunday was dark and dismal, and the family 
had ample time to think over Mrs. Graves’ visit, 
and make their plans for a season of work; for 
the terrible thought of having to part with the 
children incited each one to do all the work pos- 
sible, in order to help prevent such an occur- 
rence taking place. Kate talked it all over 
with her father, and told him what she had heard 
Mrs. Grimes say in regard to their children, and 
of the condition of their home. It was a hard 
blow for him, but he bore it bravely, and cast 
off his sluggishness and dreaming, resolved to 
show the world that he could work. 

They decided that the letter had been written 
by either Mrs. Grimes or Mrs. Downs; and Mrs. 
Ford, realizing the full import of the previous 
day’s visit, became as bitter against the two 
women as she had formerly been against Mrs. 
Eay ; and when at night, the two came over with 
smooth speeches and smiling looks to find the 
result of their letter, they met with such a cool 
reception from each member of the family, in- 
cluding Carlo, who took his place by the stove 
and growled continuously during their visit, that 
55 


56 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


they went away without having learned a thing, 
beyond the fact of their having been there; a 
fact which Kate communicated with the remark : 
“That if they wished to know more about it, 
they could write another letter to follow their 
first one, and that their room would be much 
more welcome than their company.” A remark 
which Mrs. Ford did not correct the girl, for 
making. 

Monday, and they all went to work. Mr. Ford 
to the bark" woods which was just ready for peel- 
ing, many of the farmers beginning work in the 
woods the same week. In the early spring Mr. 
Ford had ploughed the garden, a small plot, 
which in all the years he had been there he had 
never made profitable, as he had never intended 
to stay from one season to another. On account 
of the heavy frosts late in May or the first of June, 
many did not put in their gardens until late, in 
order to escape having their vines killed ; so the 
Fords were but a little later than their neigh- 
bors in getting in their garden ; for with the ex- 
ception of a very few rows of potatoes, nothing 
had as yet been planted. 

During the following weeks they worked un- 
ceasingly. Mr. Ford, in the woods, felling the 
great hemlocks which came crashing through 
the other trees to the ground under the steady 
blows of the axe, and after the chip, chipping 
of the spud, lay stripped of their dark covering, 
whitening sepulchres of their past grandeur. 
Steadily he worked in the woods, until he had 
peeled two carloads and piled it in the clearing 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


57 


to be drawn to the Siding, where hundreds of 
cords were being piled by the farmers awaiting 
shipment. 

Minnie was at school until the last of June and 
the whole garden work fell upon Kate and Kirt. 
They fertilized the ground as richly as they 
could, and used every available inch of their 
garden plot in planting their potatoes, corn and 
vegetables. So diligently did they work and so 
rapidly did everthing grow under the hot sun, 
that there was not a garden in the settlement 
that could compare with theirs; and they planned 
on having corn enough for their chickens and 
potatoes enough for their winter use. The 
season was very dry, but their garden did not 
suffer as the two watered it every day with 
water from the lake. Not a weed was to be seen, 
as Kirt devoted his energies to its prosperity as 
faithfully as he ever had to his violin, leaving 
Kate time to attend to the housework, and she 
worked with such energy that she did not allow 
any dirt or dust to accumulate in one of the four 
rooms. 

Every week she found time to appear in Mrs. 
Ray’s kitchen with Irene in her arms, and take 
observation lessons in housekeeping ; the good 
woman never failing to give the girl many little 
hints and helps, and told her that when she 
wished to learn to cook she would teach her how ; 
but that was beyond Kate at present. Their 
chickens kept them supplied with flour and 
meal and the very few groceries they were 
obliged to have ; their living consisted almost 


68 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


entirely of eggs, milk and Johnny-cake, and 
Minnie did all of their baking out of school- 
hours. Pie, cake and cookies, were almost un- 
heard of in the Ford household. 

The neighbors had not failed to notice and 
comment on the unheard of activity in the Ford 
family, and while rightly divining the cause, 
predicted that it would be of mushroom growth ; 
many of these unpleasant remarks reached Kate’s 
ears, but she refrained from repeating them to 
anyone l;>ut Irene, who sympathized in baby 
fashion. 

The last of June Kirt drew the tan-bark to 
the siding with powerful Dolly, their one horse, 
and the old lumber wagon, which an endless 
amount of tinkering had make strong enough 
for their purpose. A rickety express wagon 
was their only other vehicle. Mr. Ford then 
turned his attention to the meadow, and with a 
scythe cut the hay while Kate followed with the 
rake. By the Fourth the tan-bark was all drawn, 
the hay cut and stacked, as the little shanty 
barn had no room for it ; and the garden with 
its corn and potatoes, and luxuriant vines, was 
a constant source of pride and joy. 

Lawrence Mills, the village some miles distant, 
was to have a big celebration, and the whole 
surrounding country-side turned out to help 
celebrate. The Ford children were as anxious to 
go as any of their neighbors, and had talked of 
nothing else for days; for there was to be patriotic 
music, speeches, readings, etc., at the hall; sack 
racing, horribles, a parade, horse-racing and 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


69 


foot-races, catching a greased pig, dancing, a 
balloon ascension, and best of all, fire-works in 
the evening. What young people of fifteen and 
sixteen would withstand such attractions? Cer- 
tainly not the Fords, and early in the morning 
Dolly was brought to the door harnessed to the 
express wagon, and the five children drove 
merrily away, having thirty cents to spend; an 
amount for which the three oldest ones had 
denied themselves eggs in order to save from the 
family expenditures. 

They were bent on having a good time and 
were resolved not to care if they were shabbily 
dressed, and the little ones were barefoot; they 
were all clean, and their garments were whole,, 
for the girls had taken two whole days to wash, 
iron and repair their clothes for the great event. 
Kirt’s pants were too short, his feet were bare, 
his hat ragged and he was coatless; but what 
did he care? he was going to have a chance to 
hear music for all one day, and that was enough 
for him. The girls had faded, outgrown calico 
dresses which had been their best for two sum- 
mers. Shoes which they never dared to w’ear at 
home, and hats of tWo-year-old style ; the babies 
in their little slips and gingham sunbonnets 
were as happy as if dressed in the finest lawn, 
for they were going to ride and that was every- 
thing to them. 

They drove joyously away. Kirt and Kate on 
the front seat; Minnie and the little children in 
the back. Dolly, who in spite of her unusual hard 
work of the previous weeks had not failed very 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


m 

much in flesh, was in as good spirits as the 
children and trotted briskly ahead. All of the 
country side were astir, and early as they were 
yet a number of teams had gone ahead of them, 
and many more followed them over the dusty 
roads to the town. 

On their way they talked of their future pros- 
pects. “It is such a comfort to think that this 
is the very last of our being so poor,” remarked 
Minnie, “for papa will surely get sixty dollars 
for his bark, and that will help us wonderfully; 
for the garden is coming on so nicely that we 
won’t have to use the money for food and we can 
buy clothes and things with it.” 

“Yes,” assented Kate , “it’s a good thing for 
us that Mrs. Graves came as she did, for we 
could never have stirred pa if something hadn’t 
come up about the children ; and when he gets 
the sixty dollars it will be more money than he 
has ever earned since Bessie was born ; for he 
lost that office he was running for that spring 
and he was so discouraged he has never tried to 
do anything else since, but just ‘bushwhack’ as 
ma says, and she is enough to try the patience of 
anybody. But I feel rich with the five dollars 
pa promised us when he got his money. I know 
wffiat I shall do with mine. What will you do, 
Kirt?” 

“Get some clothes for winter, and shoes for 
Bessie, and some violin strings if I have enough 
left,” he answered, “what will you do?” 

“Get something decent to wear, a pair of shoes 
anyway, and stockings, and Irene must have 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


61 


shoes this winter. Those little moccasins the 
children had last winter won’t do for this, and I 
guess ril buy a washtub, and have anew bottom 
put in the old boiler. Mrs. Ray said it could be 
done, and then my washing will look like 
hers. O! I could use a hundred dollars easy; 
but no matter; we can get along someway.” 

“I’ve thought what I shall do with mine,” 
said Minnie. “I am going to get the pretty 
gingham I saw in the store a month ago ; it will 
only cost a dollar and a half ; a straw hat for 
fifty cents; a handkerchief and a pair of gloves 
and some shoes and rubbers, and some aprons 
for mamma, and that will leave me about a dol- 
lar to spend at the examination for paper and 
such things, and when I get to teaching, for I 
know I shall pass, we will be all right, for I 
can help us all out of being so poor.” 

“Oh yes, we shall be all right, and we can 
stand being poor a little while longer,” said 
Kate cheerily, “for sixty dollars will make us 
rich. There’s going to be acres of berries. The 
huckle-berries are ripe already, and the rasp- 
berries and blackberries are coming on good too, 
and you and I can pick quarts of them and sell 
them as we did last year, Minnie ; and you know 
I am going to pick enough berries for Mrs. Ray 
to pay her for making our dresses. Oh , yes, 
we shall never be so poor again, for we are get- 
ting so big, we three, you will be seventeen, in 
October, and Kirt and I sixteen in December, 
and of course we can do something to help. I 
only wish we had done it before, but you know. 


62 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Minnie, we were never taught to work, and I 
didn’t care about anything but helping pa out 
doors, and you, nothing but books, so of course 
we are poor. But we’ll have a good time to-day 
anyway. See how many people are in town 
already. We can spare ten .cents, can’t we, and 
put Dolly in the stable?” 

“Yes, that must be her Fourth; then we’ll get 
some fire-crackers for'’ Bess and Irene, and cook- 
ies for us,” replied Kirt; “you girls stay here on 
the sidewalk, and I’ll come for you when I get 
the horse put up.” 

The girls so seldom went to town that they 
were awkward and shy among so many people, 
and stood silently by themselves waiting for 
Kirt to appear ; then they wandered away to the 
various attractions expecting a whole day of 
unalloyed enjoyment. Kirt went with them to 
the hall to hear the music, and when the 
speeches and readings were over with, he took 
Bessie to the Bowery Hall, which was already 
filled with merry dancers, and finding a secluded 
seat enjoyed the music to his heart’s content. 

Kate was anxious to see the races, and per- 
suaded Minnie to go with her to them. Thus 
the time wore on until noon, and after eating 
their lunch in the wagon they wandered back to 
the main street where the running race was to 
be held, followed by the balloon ascension. 


CHAPTER VII. 


Cl?rougl] Arclj of ,-^tre. 

The running race which was the leading feat- 
ure of the day’s attraction, brought the crowds 
to the sidewalks from the saloons and the bow- 
ery dances as well as from the lemonade stands 
and lunch counters. The streets were cleared 
of teams and bicycles, and after considerable 
scoring the horses were started and all watched 
in breathless suspense the dense clouds of dust 
which completely hid the flying horses from 
view, as they raced down the given half-mile 
stretch ; but while Kate had been all eagerness 
regarding the race, Kirt had given his sole at- 
tention to the music of Ben Hur’s Chariot Race 
sounding from the band wagon. 

The day was intensely hot with a strong west 
wind blowing a gale, but these little discomforts 
were totally overlooked by the crowd who were 
congratulating themselves on not having rain to 
spoil their day’s amusement. The third and 
final heat of the race was called, and the horses 
were off amid the intense excitement of the 
throng ; but the race was never to be watched to 
B finish, for hardly had a quarter been completed 
when the ringing cry of “Fire! fire! the woods 
63 


64 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


are on fire!” rang through the air and was in- 
stantly taken ujd by a hundred voices, as the 
panic-stricken crowds noticed for the first time 
the dense clouds of smoke lifted by the wind 
revealing sheets of flame leaping among the dry 
grass and timber just east of the town. 

Forgotten were the races and other amuse- 
ments, and the crowds rushed toward the 
scene of conflagration, where the fire had 
suddenly sprung up kindled by a stray fire- 
cracker, and fanned into terrible fury by the 
wind, was already beyond their control. 

How Kirt and his sisters kept together they 
never knew, but they were among the first to 
reach the outskirts of the village where the fire 
was rapidly licking up the dead wild grasses of 
the pine chopping, and leaping up the bare dead 
trees, wreathing them in flames from trunk to 
top, and menacing the board houses on the town 
limits and threatening with destruction the lum- 
ber piles not far distant. 

Wildly clanged the firebells, and the steam 
saw-mill gongs shrieked and bellowed and 
groaned, waking the echoes for miles around 
and calling out every man, and every means the 
town afforded to help extinguish the flames. 
The little fire-engine came clanging to the rescue 
but the stream was dry, and the neighboring 
wells so low that it could be of little use. The 
celebration had instantly turned into a fire 
brigade ; every man and boy who could throw 
up fresh earth or whip the flames with brush, 
did all in his power to stay the spread of the 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


65 


fire ; but fanned by the fierce west wind it swept 
on, but fortunately away from the town, leaving 
a blackened smoking plain, dotted here and 
thereby blazing trees which came crashing down, 
sending showers of sparks high in the air, 
while the hungry wind caught up the flying 
cinders and carried them on to the green forest 
beyond, and soon the whole country east of the 
town seemed wrapped in sheets of flame ; the sky 
reflecting back the red tongues of fire, and the 
sun shining through, like a fiery ball swinging 
in a cloud of smoke. 

With a frightened crowd of women and chil- 
dren the Fords had stood silently watching the 
scene, too awe-struck and terrified to think, till 
Minnie exclaimed: 

“0, Kate! it is going tow’ard home!” 

“No, not unless it gets into the north a little 
more for we live northeast of here,” Kate an- 
swered turning towards Kirt, who put Bessie 
down from his arms and said: 

“I think we had better start for home or we 
may not get there. The wind may change, and 
we had better go while we can. You stay right 
here and I will come with Doll. We can get 
home in an hour and the folks will be frightened 
about us.” He was back in a few moments, and 
sprang on the back seat with Minnie, leaving 
Kate free to drive, who realizing what every 
moment meant, gave Doll free rein, and drove 
rapidly out of town. 

For the first two miles, aside from the dense 
smoke they were in no danger, as their road led 


66 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


away from the fire ; then it turned and Kirt 
spoke for the first time since they started. 

“I am afraid,” he said hoarsely, “that the 
wind is changing. I thought when we started 
that the fire would not cross our road. But just 
as we left town I saw the vane on the livery 
barn was nearly northeast, and I am afraid we 
cannot make the river before the fire does.” 

Kate struck the horse vigorously, starting her 
into a brisk gallop. “If we can only get through 
the Black Woods before the fire reaches there 
we shall be all right. These two miles south we 
have covered quickly, and it is only two miles 
more to the corner where the river crosses the 
road,” Kate answered hopefully. 

“But you must remember,” said Minnie, as 
she held firmly to her hat, “that the fire isn’t 
standing still waiting for us to come to the cor- 
ner; and oh, Kate, can’t you make Doll go just 
a little bit faster?” 

Kate had been prudent enough to let the horse 
save her strength during the first two miles, but 
when they entered the two miles ride toward the 
east, right in the path of the flames which were 
already crackling and roaring in the pine forest, 
she realized that now they must ride for life, 
and she urged the horse on continually. 

“The wind has changed, Kirt;” she turned a 
white face toward her brother. “For the love 
of God, you and Minnie hold fast to the children. 
The wind is blowing a gale ; and there does not 
seem to be air enough to breathe. See how the 
tree-tops weave and how dark the sky is ! The 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


67 


iire will catch us before we get through ; and we 
must ride into it. Doll ! go for your life !” 

Minnie and Kirt sank into the bottom of the 
wagon, and held the crying children, while Kate 
bracing herself on the front seat with her feet 
against the dashboard, drove for her very life. 
Already the fire had caught on both sides of the 
road, and as far as they could see ahead of them 
and to the right appeared a line of blazing trees 
and sheets of flame in the undergrowth. 

For a mile the old express wagon bounded 
over the rough woods road, now striking a pro- 
jecting root on one side or grazing a stump on 
the other ; bouncing over the uneven corduroy, 
nearly sending the terrified children out from 
their seats. The little ones screamed with ter- 
ror, and clung to Kirt and Minnie, who held 
desperately to the sides of the wagon. 

The air was dense with smoke and the flying 
cinders ignited the dense undergrow^th, and fell 
on all sides of the wagon which could not long 
endure the strain ; and as they dashed over a 
little hill the front wheel plunged into a rut, fol- 
lowed by a terrific crash, a whirl of flying spokes, 
and the wagon lurched forward, coming down up- 
on the axle, throwing Kate violently forward over 
the dashboard, while the others were thrown 
in a heap out on the ground. 

Kate did not lose her presence of mind, and 
springing instantly to her feet brought the horse 
to a stop, while the rest scrambled to their feet. 
For an instant no one spoke, then Minnie sobbed 
out that they would all be burned alive, for 


68 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


ahead and behind they could see nothing but 
fire, except for a short distance to the right 
where the undergrowth was not yet ablaze; al- 
though the fire roared and crackled in the tree- 
tops above them as if the very demons of hell 
were roaring over their heads. 

That was an awful moment, one that they 
never forgot, as they stood there in the burning 
forest, by the side of their ruined wagon ; the 
frightened horse looking at them as if question- 
ing their next move, the little ones shrieking 
with fear, clinging to them for the protection it 
seemed they could not give ; retreat cut off, fire 
on every side except a short distance to the 
right, and death seeming certain for them all. 

It was but a few seconds, yet it seemed an 
eternity. At that moment a herd of frightened 
deer burst from the undergrowth, and ran head- 
long toward the right. Kate grasped the situ- 
ation. 

“The river! the river!” she exclaimed. “It 
is there. You and Minnie go there, you can 
swim. I can’t. I will take the children and 
ride for life. The fire is only in the tops yet, 
ahead of us ! Quick ! unharness Doll, and I 
will go !” 

A moment and the horse was taken from the 
broken wagon. Kate strapped one rein firmly 
around the horse’s body, throwing off all the 
harness excepting the bridle, and sprang on her 
back, using the check rein to guide her with. 
“Hand me Bessie! strap her tight to me so she 
cannot fall !” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


69 


Kirt had been winding the other rein around 
Bessie’s waist. He kissed her as he lifted her 
to Doll’s back and fastened the rein around 
Kate’s waist, thus binding the two together. 
The tears rolled down his cheeks. “God will 
take care of you Bessie, and remember and hold 
fast to Kate,” he said brokenly. 

Minnie handed Irene, and Kate clasped her in 
her arms and looked back for an instant to say 
good-bye. In the moment in which they had 
been getting ready the fire had made rapid prog- 
ress ; and as Minnie turned to flee for the river 
she called : 

“Kate, darling, do not fall, for if you do all 
will be lost.” 

“I cannot and will not fall,” she shouted in 
reply, and something in her determined voice re- 
assured the others, and they parted each with an 
unsaid prayer trembling on the lips. Life or 
death lay before them. Neither knew which it 
would be; for two of them the dark waters of 
the swift rivpr offered the only safety; for the 
other three, a wild ride through blinding smoke 
and flame. 

Doll sprang forward, exerting every muscle 
in her powerful frame ; half blinded by the glare 
of the fire, she bowed her head to the ground and 
dashed on under the fire-wreathed tossing trees ; 
but as faster and faster she ran bearing her pre- 
cious burden to safety, wilder and fiercer came 
the flames, sweeping over hill and dale, leaping 
from tree to tree, roaring through the grasses 
and turning the undergrowth into a living lake 


70 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


of fire, scorching the horse’s flanks and 
singeing Kate’s hair which tossed wildly behind 
her upon the wind. 

She never looked to the right or left, but sat 
the horse as firmly as if the animal was a part 
of herself : clasping Irene to her breast, holding 
the little face away from the fire as much as 
she could while the child sobbing with ter- 
ror cowered in her arms, she held the rein be- 
tween her teeth so as to hold the child more 
firmly. Poor frightened Bessie ceased crying, 
but hiding her face on her sister’s shoulder she 
clasped her arms about her waist and shut her 
eyes so as not to see the dreadful sight about her. 

Now but half a mile lay between them and the 
open clearing where there was a considerable 
stretch of ploughed land. Would they be able to 
reach it? Kate uttered a stifled prayer for de- 
liverance, and urged Doll on to greater speed if 
possible, but the noble horse was doing her best 
and running at greater speed than she had ever 
run before. The fire had caught in many places 
on the other side of the highway and added ta 
the frightful roar and terrible heat. Just beyond 
stretched a belt of hemlock ; the flying sparks 
had ignited the tops of the trees, and the sandy 
road ahead of her lay under a glittering arch of 
fire. Involuntarily she glanced behind ; the wild 
thought of retreat flashed across her mind, but 
that was impossible, for already the fire had 
crossed her track and seemed about to engulf 
her. “0 God!” she cried, “this is terrible, but 
spare me for the children’s sake!” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


71 


For a moment Doll seemed to be blinded and 
acted as though she was going mad. Once she 
turned partly around and reared, trying to wheel 
about and rush again into the holocaust from 
which she had just emerged ; but Kate succeeded 
after a brief struggle in bringing her under con- 
trol and urged her forw’ard. The horse w^as trem- 
bling with fear and great beads of sweat rolled 
down her quivering flanks. With flakes of white 
foam flying from her lips and her head bowed 
down between her knees, she dashed under the 
blazing trees, the thunder of her hoofs drowned 
by the crackling of the blazing and breaking 
branches above. The very air seemed to rain 
down the fiery particles upon them, but luckily 
for them the green needle-like leaves of the hem- 
lock had no power to retain the heat, and all 
fell harmlessly ; but the heat was fearful ; the 
air was nearly burned out in the fiery hell through 
which they w’ere passing — the worst stretch of 
their terrible ride. 

Kate lay as low as possible, shielding Irene’s 
face and keeping it turned toward the ground, 
for the undergrowth of the hemlocks had not 
yet caught fire ; if it had they never could have 
passed through. The fierce wind surged through 
the treetops carrying the flying sparks onward. 
Here and there a blazing tree had fallen across 
the road, but the maddened horse leaped over 
them and rushed blindly on. 

Just ahead the old bridge spanned the river. 
She uttered a joyous cry at the sight, but her 
joy was turned to dismay ; for at that in- 


72 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


stanfc she saw that a blazing tree had fallen 
across it and the dry planks of the bridge were 
already on fire. 

She tried to rein Doll down the banks and so 
plunge into the river ; but the horse, crazed and 
bewildered, paid no attention to the rein, and 
seizing the bit between her teeth rushed wildly 
on the blazing bridge, plunging fearlessly into 
the very flames, and with a terrific bound gained 
the clear, unscorched planks beyond, and the 
next instant was beyond the flames and into the 
clearing where the fire could not come. 

Kate shut her eyes as the horse leaped on the . 
bridge, and in that brief instant she expected 
nothing but certain death, fearing the bridge 
would crash beneath them. A whiff of cooler 
air fanned her cheeks ;the horse’s hoofs no longer 
thundered over the shaking bridge, and she 
opened her eyes to see that they were safe ; had 
turned towards the north, and had left the fire 
roaring towards the east. 

Realizing the danger was past, Doll went 
slower and slower, then came down upon a walk 
and stopped panting for breath, with hardly 
strength to stand. 

Kate leaned over her neck and put Irene on 
the ground ; then she unbuckled the rein, free- 
ing herself from Bessie and sprang off, taking 
the child in her arms. She led Doll under a 
tree and rubbed her down, while the children, 
exhausted from their terrible ride, fell asleep in 
the shade. 


CHAPTER VIII. 


An 3risl? 

Doll was nearly spent with the heat and stood 
with drooping head and heaving sides, the per- 
spiration streaming from every pore, while Kate 
rubbed her vigorously, utilizing Irene’s much 
soiled apron in want of a better article. She 
noticed for the first time that her legs and hips 
had been scorched, and her mane and tail badly 
singed by her fearful race through the flames ; 
and forgetting entirely her own weariness she 
thought only of some way to care for the horse 
and relieve her sufferings. “If I only had a 
blanket and some ointment for you, Doll,” she 
said aloud ; and as if in answer to her wish she 
heard the cheery voice of old Mike O’Reilly 
calling : 

“An’ in faith, gyurl what is the matter with the 
ould mear an’ is it out of the fire you’ve come?” 

Kate turned joyfully, and greeted the honest 
hearted old man and his wife warmly, who were 
hurrying down the road. “I thought you had 
probably gone to celebrate, and I was just wish- 
ing I had a blanket and some ointment for my 
poor Doll here, for she is burned, and I am 
afraid she will founder.” 


73 


74 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


“Founder is it! an’ it’s burnt that she is 
too!” and the old man took the bridle from 
Kate’s hand and looked at the horse closely. “She 
aint burnt deep at all, at all; but you niver mean 
to tell me, gyurl, that you an’ the mear, an’ the 
two Childers havecome through the fire yonder.” 

“But we have,” answered Kate. “We thought 
we could get through, and we left town just 
after the fire started, and we were all right until 
we turned east, and then the wind had changed 
and the fire was coming tow^ard us; but we got 
on all right until the wagon broke, a mile back, 
where the river comes near the road, and I took 
the children and ran through the fire, and Kirt 
and Minnie went to the river.” 

“For the love of God!” both her listeners 
ejaculated, “an’ ef you aint the pluckiest gyurl 
to ride through the fire that way. Shouldn’t 
thought the old mear could ha’ done it. But 
you’re lucky to be alive, but it w^as a fool of a trick 
a’tryin’ it. Didn’t you hev sense enough to wait 
until the fire had burned over the road? but 
that’s jest like childer. You lead the mear up to 
the Darn, an’ I’ll take care of her a spell, an’ you 
bring one of the childer an’ my old woman will 
take the other, an’ I’ll do what I can to bring 
the mear around.” 

Thus talking and scolding the old man led the 
horse to the barn, and took care of her while 
the children were laid on the good woman’s clean 
bed to rest. 

Mrs. O’Reilly trotted back and forth from the 
house to the barn]with ointments and blankets,. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


75 - 


while Kate helped the old man in his care of the 
horse. He shaded his eyes with his hand as if ta 
shut out the glare of the flames, while Kate told 
again her ride through the fire. Then he said: 

“I tould the ould woman to-day that there 
was nothin’ there that we could care to see, an^ 
my ould horse is too afraid of fire crackers to he 
taken out on such a day at all at all ; an’ thin I 
was afraid o’ fire, for the woods are as dry as a 
tinder ; butVe’re safe enough here in the clearin’ 
unless the wind changes, which it aint likely to do 
to-night. The Saints be praised that ye came 
out alive, an’ now ye lead the mear around fur 
a spell while I will take the boat an’ go up the 
river to git the bye and gyurl in the watther. 
An’ it’s safe 1 think they must be, but it’s I 
who’ll help ’em out a hit while you sthay wid 
the ould woman.” 

Kate was too glad to speak, but the old man 
did not wait for any thanks ; he saw the grati- 
tude shining in her eyes and that was enough 
for him. He hastened to the river, telling his 
wife that if the “gyurl could ride two mile& 
through the woods he could stand it a mile down 
the river. 

It was an hour before he returned ; an hour of 
intense anxiety to Kate who, although she worked 
busily over the horse, leading her around, steam- 
ing under her warm blanket, or else anointing her 
blistered legs, found the time drag heavily while 
they watched for the little canoe to come in 
sight. 

At last she could wait no longer, and giving 


76 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


the horse into the woman’s charge, she ran to 
the river, where the bridge was blazing from 
end to end, and while she stood there the last 
timber gave away and it fell with a crash into 
the river. The smoke hung heavily and the fire 
had leaped to the water’s edge, and was contin- 
uing its devastating course eastward as furiously 
as it had a half-hour previously. She wondered 
how Mr. O’Reilly had ever managed to pass be- 
neath it, and while she stood there watching 
and wondering, she saw three dark figures come 
out of the field below the bridge and enter the 
road, and O joy ! she knew it was Kirt and Min- 
nie and their brave rescuer. 

Forgetting her weariness, she ran joyfully to 
meet them, and such a meeting as it was. Kirt 
said not a word after hearing that the children 
were safe, but the two girls sobbed in each other’s 
arms as if they had been separated for years in- 
stead of an hour; for to each it was like coming 
into safety from a liviij^g death. 

Mr. O’Reilly muttered something about its 
being so “blamed hot,” and wiped his eyes with 
his big handkerchief, turning away so that they 
could not see the tears of sympathy on his cheek. 

The little boat had been carried swiftly down 
the river by the current. The heat was intense, 
but the old man had continually bathed his head 
with the cool water, and thanked his stars that 
he was not riding through the fire as Kate had 
done. The smoke hung so low to the water that 
at times he could see but a short distance 
ahead of the boat, but he paddled briskly on 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


77 


until he came in sight of a low rock just raising 
its head above the water on which hung the two 
objects of his search. 

“An’ is it fishin’ yees doin/” he called cheerily, 
“an’ usin’ your noses for bait? cause if it is, 
it’s not many fish ye’ll be ketchin’ and it’s home 
wid me you had bether go.” 

The little boat swung around in the current, 
and the old man steadied it firmly while Kirt 
helped Minnie climb in. She sank into the bot- 
tom, while Kirt sprang in and seizing an oar 
helped paddle the boat back, while Mr. O’Reilly 
gave a vivid description of Kate’s ride, ending 
by scolding them all heartily for venturing on 
such an undertaking. 

“’Twas a risky job, I know,” assented the boy, 
“and Minnie and I had a dreadful run, if it 
was only for a few rods. We were lucky enough 
to be near the river when the wagon broke down, 
else we never could have made it. I blistered 
my feet but the water helped that. I am glad 
that I saved the harness, though it bothered me 
in swimming a little as I had to help Minnie.” 

“I was so frightened that I could hardly 
swim at all, and my dress was in the way but I 
stood it until we got here to the rock and that 
kept my head out of the water, but I could never 
have gone any farther. We are very grateful 
to you, Mr. O’Reilly,” said Minnie, brightening 
up as she felt that they were in safety again. 

“An’ it’s no more than anybody would do for 
childer out in the fire,” responded their friend 
a little gruffly, “an’ it’s nothin’ that I want 


78 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


praise for at all, at all. Jist kape yer heads 
down as much as ye kin an’ use the water plinty, 
«o that ye won’t git burnt up afore we git up to 
the bridge.” 

It was a hard pull against the current and 
more than once they were obliged to stop and 
rest before they could reach the field, where Mr. 
O’Reilly dragged his boat from the Avater into 
the ploughed ground and left it as he dared not 
proceed as far as the bridge. 

Kate was for starting for home as soon asKirt 
and Minnie came but Mr. O’Reilly would not 
hear to it and insisted on their staying until 
after supper when he would carry them himself. 
And while the old man busied himself in the care 
of Doll, and his wife prepared supper the 
three stood together watching the sea of fire 
rolling towards the east, but not as fiercely, for 
the wind was beginning to die away. The road 
over which they had come was now comparatively 
free from fire aside from scattered blazing trees, 
and they saw the folly of their rash undertak- 
ing, but as they had all come out alive they did 
not complain. 

“Our tan-bark though,” said Kate sadly, 
“that must have all gone an hour ago, for the 
Siding is just east of us, and nothing could pre- 
vent its taking fire.” 

“Of course it’s all gone; butit’s just our luck,” 
said Minnie regretfully, “I don’t see that it’s 
any use for us to do anything for something 
always happens. But we are not alone in it for 
there were hundreds of cords there besides ours.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


79 


‘‘Yes, and thousands of dollars gone. It comes 
as hard on us as on anyone, but don’t say much 
about it, girls, to father. He will feel bad 
enough about it without hearing us complain. 
Let us go in. She says that supper is ready.” 
Kirt’s voice was troubled, but he was determined 
to not make the matter any worse by talking it 
over. 

A very plain but bountiful supper the old 
woman had provided, but it seemed like a feast 
to the Fords. Knowing something about their 
poverty, as did every one for miles around, she 
pressed them to eat, and when they went away 
she bestowed upon the children a generous sup- 
ply of cakes and cookies, enough to make them 
remember her for days to come. 

They drove silently homeward; each one occu- 
pied with gloomy thoughts, a sad ending to 
their day of expected happiness; their bark 
destroyed and the berries burned. Nothing 
was left now but their garden, and Minnie’s 
chance of getting a school. 

Mr. Ford met them as they drove in the yard. 
His face was livid from the anxiety he had been 
enduring. “Thank God ! your alive!” he ex- 
claimed, “I could not leave your mother as she 
has been in hysterics for hours or I should have 
gone in search of you. Was the town burned 
out?” 

“Kate yode the hossey troo de fire wiv me an’ 
Bessie on his back : an’ she took my apron she 
did, to yub de hossey wiv,” prattled Irene, as 
her father took her in his arms, before the others 
could explain. 


80 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


He heard the story of their ride in silence; 
not even censuring them for undertaking it ; but 
after Mr. O’Reilly had driven hastily away, to 
escape his earnest thanks, he said to Kate : 

“I am proud of you, my child. There are not 
many girls who could have ridden a horse through 
the fire that way.” 

“Better thank Doll,” said the girl, “if she had 
balked we never could have come through.” 

“Doll is a noble horse, and as long as I can 
get her something to eat, she shall never be sold, 
after this day’s work. You have taken such 
good care of her that she will not be injured. 
Take her to the barn, Kirt ; there is corn in the 
box for her.” 

“Papa,” said Minnie, gently, “you know the 
tan-bark has gone.” 

“Yes,” he replied simply, “but don’t say 
much about it. It will only worry your mother, 
and make matters worse. We shall get along 
some way.” 

“But the children,” said Minnie, “I can’t 
help thinking of them. But if I get a school 
they will be all right after all.” 

“And our garden is splendid; that’s one com- 
fort ; but I expected to get enough money pick- 
ing berries to help, but they are all burned,’^ 
sighed Kate. 

“We can be thankful,” interposed Kirt, “that 
we got through alive, and that the fire is not 
coming this way ; I do not think that we are in 
much danger here.” 

“No; but the folks east will have to fight fire 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


81 


for their lives unless it rains by to-morrow. 
Your mother has wakened. Don’t frighten her, 
as she has had a dreadful day,” said Mr. Ford 
as his wife came out of the house. 

“Papa tries to be brave,” said Minnie, after 
they had gone to bed, “but I know he feels 
dreadfully over the tan-bark going. We will all 
have to work hard this summer, to make what 
little we have do until I can get a school.” 

“If we don’t, I don’t know what will become 
of Irene,” said Kate. 

“Or of Bessie,” answered Kirt from the ad- 
joining room. 


CHAPTER IX. 


,-^rost anb Despair. 

The air was so dense with smoke the follow- 
ing morning, that they could see but a few rods 
distant, except where the glare of the flames 
lighted the sky in the east. It was difficult to 
breathe the smoke-laden air, and the day wore 
away in great discomfort, Kate, Kirt and Min- 
nie being too wearied from their yesterday’s 
experiences to do much besides rest ; while Mr. 
Ford, completely disheartened by the loss of his 
bark, worked aimlessly in his garden, then be- 
took himself to a brown study of his tariff 
schedule, which he had laid aside when he com- 
menced work in the woods. It was an unfavor- 
able sign, and Kate feared that his ambition 
had been only of a mushroom growth after all. 

Night brought rain ; a drenching, soaking 
rain, which continued for three days, effectually 
putting out the terrible fires, which had devas- 
tated whole sections, destroying millions of dol- 
lars worth of property. When the rain ceased, 
the whole country breathed once more. The 
people who had been unable to return to their 
homes the day of the celebration came back as 
soon as the bridge was repaired, and thankful 
82 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


83 


that they had not lost their homes, took up life 
in the same old fashion. 

July wore away. Mr. Ford spent his time 
reading politics as usual. Minnie studied des- 
perately, knowing how much depended upon 
her passing the examination, while Kate divided 
her time between the housework and the garden, 
which was already giving them a good living ; 
Kirt helping her when he felt like working, but 
the greater part of the time he spent with Bessie 
and his violin under the old hemlock. 

August was ushered in with terrible heat; 
for two weeks the mercury hugged the hundreds 
during the day, relieved only at night by terrific 
thunder storms which rendered sleep impossible ; 
two weeks in which humanity only existed, not 
lived. Day after day brought reports of terrible 
damage by lightning until Kate said bitterly, 
that she dreaded each successive night fearing 
that their turn would come next. She had not 
long to wait ;.for the night of the fifteenth, when 
the whole heavens seemed a living sheet of 
flame , the old hemlock, under which Kirt had 
spent so many happy hours, was struck, its limbs 
shivered into fragments, and its trunk rent from 
top to base. Mr. Ford’s scythe which he had 
hung in one of the lower branches, after finishing 
haying, was hurled, together with a fragment 
of the blazing tree, into the stack of hay near 
the barn, which was soon consumed ; but the 
rain soon falling in torrents prevented farther 
damage being done. 

The deafening thunder following the blinding 


84 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


flash prevented them from knowing at first what 
damage had been done ; but when they found that 
all of their hay was gone Kate gave up and cried 
bitterly. Her father accepted it stoically. It was 
but another pifce of his luck, he said, and conse- 
quently no use of his trying to do anything. 
They would get along someway for they always 
had. 

Minnie tried to comfort her sister with the 
assurance that if she got a school and the gar- 
den came out all right, they w’ould be able to 
live. But Kate was not to be comforted. She 
felt sure that something would happen to them, 
and that they would have to let the children go 
in the Fall. 

The next day was cooler ; the heat seemed to 
have reached its height, and the following days 
were marked by a great change of weather. At 
first it was greatly enjoyed, but as each night 
grew a little cooler than the preceding night 
had been, all grew very anxious lest early frosts 
should come and kill the gardens. 

The fatal examination day came for Minnie, 
the third week of August, and dressed in the 
same shabby clothes she had worn the Fourth, 
with a dollar, the result of two weeks of pinching 
to pay her expenses, drove over with Mr. Ray, 
who with his wife had taken a great interest in 
their work that summer and was anxious to 
help them to succeed. Kate came for her at 
night and listened delightedly to her bright ac- 
counts of the examination and her surety of suc- 
cess. “ They seemed to ask just what I knew; 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


85 


and the Commissioner was good enough to let 
me get through to-day, for he said that my pa- 
pers were all excellent ; so I feel sure of passing, 
and now we can look for a school,” she said 
cheerfully. 

Kate’s heart was lighter than it had been be- 
fore in many days, as they drove slowly home- 
ward under the pale rays of the moon over the 
same road they had come the night of the fire. 
Kate shuddered as they crossed the temporary 
bridge and drew her thin shawl tighter around 
her and wrapped Irene in the blanket. “I am 
afraid we shall have a frost to-night. I don’t 
think I ever knew it to be colder at this time of 
the year than it is now.” 

A pained look crossed Minnie’s face as she 
answered: “I am afraid of one, for I am cold 
myself, and if there should be a frost it would 
kill our garden. Oh, this is the worst country to 
live in, it is fire, heat and frost, all in one sea- 
son ; and it does seems almost as papa says that 
there is no use of trying to do anything anyway, 
for the Fates seem to be against us.” 

“Well,” Kate said sadly, “we will have to 
make the best of it if it does come, but it will 
ruin us. I don’t believe pa will ever make another 
effort, for you know this is the third time he has 
tried since we moved in the woods ; and each 
time it has been either drouth or frost that has 
killed all his crops.” 

“There is no use borrowing trouble,” Minnie 
answered cheerfully; “we will hope that the 
wind will rise, or else it will cloud over, though 


86 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


I must confess it looks as if it would not do either 
now,” and she glanced at the cold, unpitying, 
star-lit sky above them. 

Irene cried with the cold and they hurried 
Doll the faster, hut it was after seven before 
they reached home. Minnie’s cheerful talk about 
the examination raised the spirits of the family, 
and all went to bed feeling hopeful of the future. 

Kate woke in the night feeling cold. She rose 
to get more bedding and looking out of the 
window shuddered at the sight of the clear, cold 
night, and crept back by the side of Irene, dread- 
ing the morning. 

As the light of early morning stole into her 
window she arose, and dressing noiselessly 
stole down the stairs and taking the milk-pail 
from the pantry shelf went outdoors. She shiv- 
ered with the cold as she stood in the clear 
morning air. The little lake was shrouded with 
a silver mist and the frosty fields glistened in 
the sun’s early rays. 

She knew that the frost had done its work.. 
The corn leaves hung limp and dank, and all the 
vines were killed. Their summer’s work ruined 
in one dreadful night. She crossed the enclosure 
and entered the meadow, the frosty grass stinging 
her bare feet. Doll came up to her whinnying 
from the rude shelter of boughs in the fence cor- 
ner, and rubbed her nose sympathetically on the 
girl’s arm, her warm breath freezing on the cold 
air. She threw her arms around the animal’s 
neck and hugged her passionately ; then with a 
half-sobbing cry she passed on and roused the 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


87 


sleeping cow, and sitting down by her side com- 
menced milking. 

Her heart was full of despair at this new ca- 
lamity, and as she looked at the ruined cornfield 
she felt more bitter and rebellious than she had 
ever felt before. ‘T believe it is something as ma 
says,” she mused, “that pa is the Jonah of this 
Higgins District, and as long as we are here he 
will not prosper and no one else can ; she says 
that the gourd has grown over him, and that it 
is going to rot and that we will all die ; and I 
almost wish it was over with, for it makes no 
difference whether we work or not we have 
nothing just the same;” and she paused in her 
milking long enough to brush away the tears 
that were blinding her eyes. 

“I was never more discouraged in my life,” she 
said aloud, “and I begin to think that we might 
as well take hold of hands and jump into the 
lake together as to try to do anything again. 
The children will have to go, that will be the 
next thing.” As she spoke these gloomy 
thoughts the sweet strains of the violin broke 
the stillness of the morning,and she heard Kirt 
singing : 

“Light after darkness, 

Gain after loss ; 

Strength after weakness. 

Crown after cross. 

Sweet after bitter, 

Hope after fears ; 

Home after wandering. 

Peace after tears. 

Sheaves after sowing, 

Sun after rain ; 

Light after misery. 

Peace after pain. 


88 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Near after distant, 

Gleam after gloom ; 

Love after loneliness, 

Life after tomb. 

Joy after sorrow, 

Calm after blast. 

Rest after weariness. 

Sweet rest at last. 

After long agony. 

Rapture and bliss. 

Right was the pathway. 

Leading to this.” 

The last notes died softly away, and Kate saw 
him lay the violin down, and stand with clasped 
hands in the doorway, his face turned heaven- 
ward. She knew that he was praying, and as 
the cool breeze tossed his sunny curls from his 
forehead, and the sunbeams played across his 
face, the peace of the angels seemed reflected 
upon his brow. 

The milking was finished and the cow had 
moved away, but the girl still sat silently upon 
the stool. The pail had slipped from between 
her trembling knees, and stood on the ground by 
her feet ; but she heeded it not , nor saw any- 
thing but the singer, nor heard anything but the 
song ringing in her ears : 

‘‘After long agony. 

Rapture and bliss ; 

Right was the pathway, 

Leading to this;” 

she repeated softly to herself. “But no, it can’t 
be right for our bark and hay to be burned, and 
our corn to be killed by the frost so that we can- 
not have enough to eat this winter, and the hay 
all gone, and the corn too, so poor Doll can’t 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


89 


have anything either. It is all wrong.” But 
even as she uttered these bitter words a strange 
calm filled her soul. Surely it must be for the 
best in some way, else Kirt could not have sung 
as he did. “God has given him some hope or 
foresight,” she thought as she lifted the pail 
and moved toward the house, vaguely wonder- 
ing what calamity would befall them next. 

Mr. Ford had wakened after an uneasy sleep, 
and as he opened the window and breathed the 
frosty air, he knew that his worst enemy, the 
frost, had come, but as he stood in despair, re- 
flecting on his losses, he too heard the voice of 
Kirt in song ; and as he looked over the whit- 
ened fields and heard the soothing words, and 
the plaintive air, his heart was stirred and the 
tears dimmed his eye ; not a tear of despair but 
an awakening of his better self. 

It was a sad breakfast for them all, and when 
the scanty meal was over with, Kate proposed 
that she and Minnie should take Doll that 
day and go in search of a school. “You are so 
sure you passed,” she said, “but you won’t get 
your certificate under a week, and by that time 
the schools will all be taken, so I think we had 
better go to-day.” 

So Doll was hitched into the lumber wagon, 
and the two girls with Irene, who would not be 
left, started off with high hopes to look for the 
school which would relieve them of their neces- 
sities, and the poverty staring them in the face ; 
but although they went to all of the neighbor- 
ing schools, making as long a drive as Doll’s 


90 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


strength would permit, they met with no suc- 
cess. The schools were either all engaged or 
else no one wanted an inexperienced teacher ; 
words which Minnie heard so often that she 
asked in despair, how she could ever become ex- 
perienced if no one gave her the chance to get 
her experience. 

Night brought them home, weary and discour- 
aged, only to travel again the next day and the 
next on the same fruitless quest until a week 
had passed. As a last resort she called on the 
Commissioner who told her that it would be use- 
less to look for more that fall, as all the schools 
were taken ; but to look for winter schools about 
the last of October again. 

Too disheartened to even study, Minnie set- 
tled down with the rest of the family to wait. 
Inexperienced teachers, who had not passed as 
creditably as she had done, had secured schools, 
and she felt, poor child, as if the hand of God 
and man was against her ever doing anything. 

The few days following the frost the weather 
was quite mild, and Kirt and his father did 
what they could to save the rest of the garden ; 
but there was little that could be saved; a few 
cabbages, some turnips,and about half the bushels 
of potatoes that they expected to have, were all 
that they had to live on. With neither money from 
the bark, hay for the stock, food from the garden 
nor means of getting money, the Ford’s were in- 
deed passing through deep waters. 

Mr. Ford roused himself once more, when the 
last chance of Minnie’s getting a school was 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


91 


gone, and for days tramped the country from 
camps to mills looking for work. Anything or 
everything he was willing to do, for November 
was drawing near, and the terrible necessity was 
upon him : he was like a beast brought to bay y 
but although he searched diligently, begging 
for work in some cases, yet nothing could he get, 
for there was none to be had ; and at last he 
came back to his family utterly hopeless ; and 
tried to drown his troubles by working on his^ 
Tariff Schedule and waiting for something to 
“turn up.” 

But nothing turned up. It was the fall of 
the great financial depression of 1899, when hun- 
dreds of men were thrown out of work; the 
camps and mills only running on half time, or 
else not at all, and no matter how great men’s 
necessities might be they would not bring work. 
As the colder days of Fall came on, Kirt began 
hunting and trapping, and succeeded in catch- 
ing enough small animals to provide shoes for 
himself and the older girls by the sale of their 
pelts , while he fashioned moccasins from skins 
for the little ones. 

The world seemed more beautiful than ever 
in the lazy days of Indian Summer, when the 
sun shone softly on the red and gold tinted for- 
ests ; but Kate and Minnie were very sad, for an- 
other fruitless effort had been made for schools. 
Doll was thin, having no food but the frosted 
vegetation, and the girls in the lumber wagon, 
with their shabby worn out clothing made but 
a sorry appearance as they earnestly sought the 


92 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


much coveted school. One blunt but well mean- 
ing man told Minnie frankly that he was sorry 
for her, and had wanted her to have the school, 
but the district would not hear to it, because she 
was a Ford. ‘‘We know,” he said, “that your 
father is smart enough, but he made a great 
splurge herein politics, and then flatted out to be 
a nothin’ or nobody, and the deestrict say that 
you would do the same, and they won’t let you 
have the school, and I think that is the reason 
you can’t git a school anywhere.” 

Minnie’s heart sank in despair at his words, 
and as they drove away she said sadly : 

“It is no use, Kate; it is just as Mrs. Grimes 
says, that because we are Fords no one wants 
us ; no one wants to hire a Ford to teach school, 
and no one wants to hire a Ford to work ; and 
there is nothing for us to do but starve, for no 
matter how hard we work we can have nothing,” 
and the girl sobbed bitterly in utter despair. 

Kate listened with a desperate look on her 
white face. She was thinking of the children; 
but she said not a word as she drove Doll home- 
wards. 

That evening, as they all sat around the cheer- 
ful fire, Mr. Ford said gloomily to Kate: “It is 
just as I have said all along Kate, that it is no use 
to try, for we can do nothing. Luck’s against 
us. I can’t get work, and Minnie can’t get a 
school. I guess we have enough vegetables to 
last us for a spell, but there’s nothing for the 
cattle. You will have to sell your heifer, Kate. 
Mr. Ray was here to-day, and said that he would 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


93 


give ten dollars for her;, and well, I hate to say 
it, child, but poor Doll will have to go too ; the 
cornstalks will feed the cow until spring, and 
then we will leave this God forsaken community.” 

He did not look at the children as he spoke. 
He knew how they loved the horse and how 
hard it would be for them all without her, but he 
did not know what else to do. Kate said noth- 
ing for a moment, and then she said sadly : 

“I never thought that Doll would have to go, 
after she saved the children and me the Fourth. 
But I see how it is. She will have to go, and the 
heifer too ; for they will starve if we keep them ; 
and the next thing will be Bessie and Irene, for 
Mrs. Graves will come for them, and we will 
have to live on forever, being nothing but Just 
Fords.” Her voice choked with sobs and she 
could say no more. 

Mrs. Ford was furious in a moment. “Mrs. 
Graves won’t take the children,” she cried. “I 
guess she’ll find that the Fords are as good as 
anybody.” 

“If I could have got a school, and w^e had not 
lost everything so, we would have been almost 
rich,” said Minnie sadly. 

“If you had been thinking of heavenly 
things,” interrupted her mother, “and not been 
trying to get rich we would have been all right, 
but as old Elder Nobbins used to say, the 
‘rich man could not enter the Kingdom of Heaven, 
and we were to take no thought of the mor- 
row, for the Lord would provide.’ ” 

Kate answered dryly: “That’s Just about 


94 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


what we have been doing all these years until 
this summer, waiting for the Lord to provide; 
just folding our hands and waiting; but ma, you 
do not quote that other passage which says that 
^Faith without Works is dead.’ We are like the 
man in the parable who had but one talent and that 
he buried in a napkin. There is something wrong 
with us somewhere, or it would not be so, and 
everything we have be taken away from us.” 

‘‘To him that hath, shall be given ; and to him 
that hath not, shall be taken away, even that 
which he hath,” quoted Kirt softly. 

“That fits us exactly,” echoed Kate, “even 
what little we had has been taken away ; while 
the Rays seem to get more all the time. We were 
poor to begin with, and now we are as poor, as 
poor as Job’s turkey,” she added for want of a 
better comparison. 

“Job was a good man. He was always pa- 
tient,” Mrs. Ford remarked reprovingly. 

“Then upon my soul, you could not have been 
any relation to him,” Kate retorted angrily, and 
flouncing out of the room she went up stairs 
and throwing herself on her bed wept long and 
bitterly until she could weep no more. 

For hours she lay awake, pondering over the 
future. What was to become of them? they were 
poorer that fall than they had ever been before, 
and they had never worked harder. Her father 
had hardly clothes enough to keep him warm, 
and was so utterly discouraged that the girl knew 
it was useless to expect him to make another 


move. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


95 


Her mother, as poverty pinched the tighter, 
was more unreasonable than ever, blaming and 
scolding her husband all the time when he 
was in the house,and reviling him because he did 
not sell his books, when there was not a person 
in the whole Higgins District would have given 
a dollar for the lot. Kirt and Minnie were in 
despair, feeling as if there was nothing more to 
be done. The children would have to go any- 
way, there was no help for that. The heifer and 
Doll too; and after that — what? Their sale 
would not bring money enough to keep them 
through the winter ; even now they were hun- 
gry most of the time. 

There was no one to do anything but herself, 
she saw clearly. She fell asleep pondering the 
question, but woke with a start towards morning 
with a grand idea floating through her mind, 
and waking Minnie she whispered it to her. 


CHAPTER X. 


Scching a ITeu) i^omc. 

Although considerably comforted by her plan, 
yet it was the most miserable night she had ever 
spent, and she awoke in the morning pale, ner- 
vous and unrefreshed, and had but very little to 
say to anyone but Irene, who exercised her right 
as queen over her sister’s heart to demand and 
receive attention. 

Minnie, to whom a part of Kate’s plan had 
been communicated, yet did not consider it 
feasible, and as she said nothing about it in the 
morning, thought she had given it up. But 
soon after breakfast as she stood by the window 
kneading the last flour they had into bread, she 
saw Kate leading the heifer from the yard ; she 
called Kirt’s attention to it, and said regretfully : 
‘‘It is too bad that she has to sell Betty. We 
have all looked forward to having another cow 
and Kate has thought so much of her. She’ll 
be a cow in another year and would be such a 
help.” 

Kirt said nothing, but returned to his seat on 
the wood box and went on patching his coat 
with great industry. He was very handy with 
his needle ; indeed, more so than any other mem- 
96 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


97 


ber of the family, and always contrived to make 
his clothes and Bessie’s out wear the clothing of 
the others. 

Kate returned in the course of an hour with 
the heifer’s halter hanging on her arm. Mr. 
Ford was in the shed and she sought him out 
and told him that she had sold Betty for ten 
dollars and asked to be allowed to keep half of the 
money herself. Mr. Ford looked at her in sur- 
prise, for she had never asked for a dollar before in 
her life ; not even when she had picked and sold 
berries enough to provide the family groceries 
had she even asked for a cent for herself. He 
hesitated a moment, then answered kindly : 

“Yes, child, I know you will use it wisely. I 
only wish you could have it all for clothes 
like other girls.” 

Kate turned away, but as she reached the door 
she paused and after a moment’s hesitation, said : 
“Please promise me, pa, that you won’t sell Doll 
or try to sell her for two weeks yet ; not even 
There were tears in her eyes, and a sob 
in her voice, as she made this request. 

Her father stooped to pick up a bit of wood, 
as he answered: “No, no, child, I won’t try to 
sell her under a month, and then perhaps some- 
thing will turn up. This money will stand us 
a spell. Tell Minnie to save the wheat flour, 
what is left, just for your mother. She can’t* 
eat corn meal very well, and I will get a sack of 
that to-day. Flour is so high that we will have 
to do without it. It is a good thing that the 
cow gives milk and that the hens lay a little so 
as to help us out.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Kate made no reply, but was a good deal re- 
lieved to think Doll was safe for a month. She 
went in the house and was so unusually patient 
with her mother, who fretted considerably over 
the heifer being sold to the Rays, that Kirt 
stopped his patching and looked at her in sur- 
prise, wondering what had taken place. As 
soon as she could she went up stairs where Minnie 
found her an hour later busily repairing an old 
cloak of her mother’s. 

“What on earth are you going to do with that, 
Kate?” she asked in surprise. 

“Didn’t I tell you in the night that I had a 
plan?” she answered, without looking up from 
her work. 

“Yes, you said you had a plan ; and that you 
were going to ask papa not to try to sell Doll for 
two weeks.” 

“Yes, and he promised me he would not, not 
even for a month. And I told you, too, that 
I thought if some one tried, that work 
could be found by that time ; but 1 didn’t tell 
you any more for I wasn’t just sure myself. 
Now I know what I shall do, for I have thought 
it all out,” and Kate looked up with an expres- 
sion on her face that showed she would brook no 
opposition. 

Minnie sat down beside her. “You don’t 
mean that you are going to sell Doll yourself?” 
she said. 

“No; but I am going to take her and run 
away; and that’s what I am fixing this coat up 
for ; for I am going to wear it !” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


99 


‘‘Wear it where?” 

“I don’t know yet, but somewhere^ and that 
to-morrow if it does not storm. I am going to 
go and find a place for us to live. I am going to 
find pa a job.” 

“Yow!” Minnie exclaimed in great surprise. 
“How can you find him a job? He has been 
everywhere.” 

“Everywhere around here, you mean,” re- 
turned Kate; “you can’t stop me, Minnie Ford, 
for I have made up my mind. I shall take Doll, 
and if Kirt will go, all right; if not, I shall go 
alone. It is a poor story if in all this big world 
there isn’t a place for us where we can have our 
children,” her voice choked, but in a moment 
she went on bravely: “you tried hard and 
failed; pa tried hard and failed; now I shall try 
hard but I shall not fail. Don’t tell anyone but 
Kirt. Ma would oppose it of course, and pa 
would not let me go if he knew it ; he would say 
that it was of no use, but I feel sure we can find 
something if we only try once more. I tell you, 
I shall surely go in the morning, for to-day is 
the 25th of October, and they will come in two 
weeks for the children. I met Mis’ Grimes, and 
Mis’ Downs last night, and Mis’ Grimes who has 
been mad at me ever since I told her that her 
room was better than her company, spoke up 
and said : ‘You’ll learn better some day, Kate 
Ford, than to insult your betters. Guess you 
can see now that you aint able to care for the 
children ; just wait a week, and you’ll see what 
will happen.’ And when I told her that I didn’t 


100 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


care what she said, that she and Mis’ Downs 
were both hypocrites, Mis’ Downs said that I 
might find myself in the Reform School for girls 
if I didn’t look out; and that my mother could 
go to the poor-house, and the rest of the lazy 
tribe to begging. I was mad enough to set 
Carlo on them, but all I said was that it wouldn’t 
be healthy for either of them to come to our 
house again. I looked them straight in the face, 
and without any more words I went away and 
left them. I don’t know what w^e have done so 
wicked, but there does not seem to be any place 
in the wide world for us.” Her brave spirit 
gave way and she sobbed unrestrainedly. Min- 
nie tried to comfort her, but she wished devoutly 
that she would not be so saucy to those women, 
who were doing all in their power to injure the 
family. 

When her grief subsided she called Kirt, and 
the three made their plans for an early start in 
the morning, before the rest of the family were 
aw^ake. Minnie was to cover their retreat, and 
explain matters as best she could in their absence. 
They worked and planned to get ready while 
their father dreamed over his tariff schedule, 
and the mother dozed away the hours. 

Night brought them a caller, and kind hearted 
Mrs. O’Reilly appeared, bringing with her a 
generous piece of fresh pork, which she said she 
thought would taste good, “to the mither,” and 
a bag of cakes and cookies for the little ones, 
who screamed with delight at the sight of the 
unaccustomed dainties, and h ugged the old Irish 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


101 


woman to her heart’s content. And that was 
not all ; from her pocket she produced three pair 
of new mittens, which she gave to Kate, Kirt 
and Minnie, with the remark that she wanted 
to do something for a neighbor, for “it was Mr. 
Ford that had helped her ould mon take care of 
a sick cow for a whole day, and had niver asked 
a cint in pay, and it was not Mrs. O’Reilly who 
would not do a good turn for a neighbor.” 

Her coming brought a ray of happiness in the 
family; it was the first kindness they had known 
in weeks, for the Rays, though kind in words, 
never gave away even a cracker to a child; and 
Kate went to bed feeling very hopeful of the 
morrow, for she was sure there were other people 
in the world as kind as Mrs. O’Reilly. 

Long before morning Kirt stole from the 
house to the barn, and gave Doll her last measure 
of meal, and a bundle of frost bitten corn-stalks, 
while Kate prepared a hasty lunch on the pantry 
shelf, which they ate in silence, and long before 
the first gray dawn crept over the settlement, 
they quietly drove away, promising Minnie to 
return in a few days, having found work and a 
new home for all. 

Doll trotted briskly over the sandy roads, 
now slightly frozen, and had left Higgins Settle- 
ment by fully two miles before the sun came 
out, casting a cold and sickly light over the 
world, presaging a storm. The wind was cold 
and raw, and they had to sit close together to 
keep warm. Kirt had no overcoat, but had 
made himself as warm as possible by adding on 


102 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


as many undervests as he possessed. Kate was 
bundled in the old much worn coat of her moth- 
er, her head wrapped in a gray woolen cloud. 

Kirt drove rather slowly during the morning, 
and by noon they reached the sleepy little mill 
village of Black Lake, some fifteen miles distant* 
They decided to stop there for dinner and give 
Doll a good rest, so while they warmed them- 
selves in the store, and ate their lunch of crack- 
ers and cheese, Doll enjoyed a good rest in the 
store sheds, with oats and an armful of good 
hay for her dinner. 

While Kate warmed and rested herself in the 
store, Kirt sought out the foreman of the mills 
and lumber yard, and applied for work ; only to 
be met with a prompt refusal, for the reason 
that no new hands could be employed while they 
were obliged to turn off many of their old help, 
and were only running on quarter time at that ; 
the same old story which their father had heard 
so many times in his fruitless search for work* 

The boy came back discouraged ; but not so 
with Kate ; she was eager to try again, and at 
two o’clock they started on their northward way 
to a camp, of which Kirt had been told at the 
mill. Two other mills lay on their route, and at 
each of these they stopped, but with no better 
results. Everywhere they heard the same old 
story of no work, until even Kate was becoming 
disheartened ; but they determined to press on 
to Norton’s camp, some ten miles farther on. 

It was growing late, and also cold, but they 
bravely plodded on, for Doll, thin in flesh and also 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


103 


weak from insufficient food, could do but little 
better than that. The dull grey clouds which 
all day had overcast the sky, began to send down 
heavy flakes of snow as darkness came on, and the 
wind was raw and chill. 

“We must find some place to stay all night,” 
said Kate, at length breaking a long silence. 

“But there does not seem to be any houses at 
all on this road,” Kirt observed doubtfully as he 
tucked the blanket better around them. “I do 
not believe we have seen a house in five miles, 
and Doll is so tired it does not seem as if I can 
make her go much farther to-night. I am half 
afraid, Kate, that we have come on a fool’s er- 
rand after all.” 

“Well I am not; but that remains to be seen. 
First we must find some place to stay all night. 
Let us ask at the next place we come to. There 
is a light ahead, Kirt. Doll sees it already and 
is beginning to go a little faster, all for the sake 
of resting, poor thing.” 

But the light was only a fresh disappointment. 
They had entered a small settlement of Swedes, 
who either could not, or would not understand 
a word they said ; and with heavy hearts they 
turned away in the stormy fall evening to go, 
they knew not whither. 

The poor horse shared their dejection, and 
crept away at a snail’s pace out of the settlement 
into the woods through which their road lay, 
toward the camp, but how far distant they 
were, they did not know. Kate ventured the 
hope that they were not far off, but added that 


104 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


if they did not find a stopping place soon they 
would be obliged to camp out in the woods. 

“We are in for it now, and we might as well 
make the best of it,” responded Kirt. “I hope 
we will find a house, for you could hardly sleep 
in a camp even if we did find one. We must be 
at least twenty miles from home. We have 
come a good m'^ny miles both east and west, 
thanks to the contrary directions we have re- 
ceived; but our home is about twenty miles 
southwest of us as near as I can make out.” 

“We will go home by the County Line, the 
straight way, when we do go,” said his sister, 
cheerfully, “and I am in hopes that when we get 
to the top of this hill, we will find something 
there. If not, we must stop soon, for Doll is 
about played out. Let’s us walk it, Kirt. We 
are better able to, than Doll is to draw us. How 
I wish it had stayed pleasant; it is bad enough 
being out after dark, on a lonesone road and in 
a strange place, without having it storm.” 

They toiled slowly up the hill. The great 
trees sobbed mournfully above their heads and 
the soft snow damped their clothes, and 
the sand made walking difficult. Doll made 
frequent stops, but at last they reached the top, 
weary and disheartened. Kate was ready to cry 
with vexation and weariness, but as they climbed 
into the wagon, Kirt exclaimed joyfully : 

“A light, Kate! I am sure that I saw a 
flash of a lantern ahead in the woods.” 

“But it is off of the road, to the left. There, 
we can see it flashing in and out among the 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


105 


trees. There must be a road leading to it. We 
will stop there if they will let us, and go on to 
the camp to-morrow,” said Kate, hopeful jnce 
more. 

A few more rods, and a road led off into 
the woods. Doll needed no turning; she too 
had seen the light and knew that it promised 
rest at least; and breaking into a trot, she drew 
her load over the winding road until they came 
to a long low building, which glimmered with 
light in the darkness ; while in th^ rear were 
several buildings in which flickered lanterns by 
the score. 

‘Tt must be the Camp,” whispered Kirt, as 
Doll stopped, ‘T will go in, Kate, and see if we 
ean’t stay to-night. You hold Doll,” and in a 
moment he had opened the door and disap- 
peared. 

It seemed an age to the girl shivering with 
cold and anxiety, but in a few minutes he re- 
turned, followed by a pleasant faced, middle- 
aged man in a white apron, whom she knew at 
once to be the cook. 

They left the door open, and a flood of mel- 
low light streamed out ; Kate looked in and saw 
a long table, reaching the whole length of the 
room, loaded with hearty food, while at both 
sides sat rows of hungry men. 

She had but a glimpse of the warmth and 
comfort within, for Kirt and the man ap- 
proached the wagon. ‘Tt’s all right,” said the 
stranger in a pleasant voice. ‘‘Guess we can 
ffnd a bunk for you two, to-night, and some 


106 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


supper as well. ’Taint no kind of a night for 
kids like you to be out. Let me help you out 
girl; why,” as he took her slight form in his 
arms, “you aint no bigger than my girl at home, 
and shivering too. Here’s the chore-boy. Tend 
to the horse, Ted. Give her a good rubbing 
down, and some supper. Come around to the 
kitchen and I’ll give you some supper,children,” 
and he led the way through the eating-room, 
back into the kitchen where a great range stood 
glowing with heat. 

They followed silently, and took the proffered 
seats after divesting themselves of their wet 
wraps, while their new friend bustled about 
without speaking again ; but glancing towards 
them occasionally, he judged from their thin 
worn clothing and shy ways that they had 
learned the story of poverty, and that stern ne- 
cessity had driven them out on such a night. 
Fie said nothing until the eating-room was emp- 
ty, the last man having shuffled out to the 
sleeping shanty, and then he invited them to 
the tables and served them with such a supper as 
they had not tasted in years. Kirtmade himself 
thoroughly at ease, and did ample justice to the 
repast, but Kate felt decidedly awkward, being 
the only girl, and wished devoutly that she had 
Minnie for company. 

The supper work for the hundred men was 
finished in a marvelous short time by their new 
friend and his help, a boy about Kirt’s age, who 
soon went out to the sleeping shanty, leaving 
them and the cook alone. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


107 


‘‘Well,” he said kindly, “you two seem 
mighty young to be traveling off like this. How 
old are you, and where do you live? I’ve got a 
girl about your age and I should hate to see her 
away from home on such a night.” 

Kirt was framing a speech in order to tell 
their new friend their necessities, but Kate 
could not wait for him, so she began impulsively: 

“We’re most sixteen, sir; we are twins. Kirt 
and Kate Ford, and we live near Lawrence Mills. 
We came away because we must have work or 
starve, and we did not know but that Kirt could 
get some work here and pa too.” 

The man looked grave. ‘Tt is a bad time for 
work, child ; every day we have to turn off men. 
But why didn’t your father come?” 

Kate made a gesture of despair as she an- 
swered simply: “Pa couldn’t. He’s discour- 
aged. He’s been everywhere, and couldn’t get 
anything to do ; and he said there was no use 
to try any more ; but I told Kirt that we would 
try once ttiore, before Doll had to be sold, and 
see if we could not get work so as to save the 
children ; for we are so poor they are going to- 
take the children, little Bessie and Irene, to the 
Leslie Home; and oh, sir, there does not seem to 
be a place in the wide world for us, just because 
we are Fords, and we have come so far to-day, 
too.” She broke down and cried bitterly, 
Kirt wiped his eyes, but said nothing. As she 
said the last words a man entered unobserved, and 
motioned to the cook not to betray him. In a 
few moments Kate controlled herself, and when 


108 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


the cook asked her what her father could do, 
and why they were so poor, she forgot her 
reserve and told him the whole story from the 
iDeginning, omitting nothing only her mother’s 
inability to work. She told of their garden, the 
tan-bark, the hay, and how it had all been de- 
stroyed, leaving them nothing but the horse and 
the cow, and the prospect of losing Doll at least. 

The cook heard her through silently, and when 
she had finished he said kindly : 

“Well, well, little girl. IFs too bad. It's 
mighty hard luck you’ve been a havin’. I’m 
sorry for you; sorry as I can be. I’ll make a 
bed here for you on this bench, and the boy can 
sleep with me. In the morning maybe the fore- 
man can shake up something for your father to 
do. I’ll speak to him. My chore-boy is going 
to leave soon, and I’ll give you a chance, Kirt, 
in his place, if you want it.” 

Kirt was overjoyed and Kate no less so. The 
listener had slipped silently away and neither 
of the two knew that he had heard their pitiful 
story. 

By nine o’clock Kate was fast asleep on the 
bench made comfortable by many blankets, and 
hidden from view by a curtain of coats. Four 
o’clock came early and the cook came down from 
the chamber and busied himself about the break- 
fast, but though he worked softly, the girl 
soon awoke, and lay silently watching him and 
wondering how he could bake such lovely bread 
as she had eaten the night before. 

After the men had eaten their early breakfast 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


109 


and had gone to work she and Kirt had theirs 
with their kind friend. Hardly had they finished 
when the foreman entered, and coming to them 
asked them many questions about their circum- 
stances and what they thought their father 
could do. 

Kate took upon herself the task of answering: 
“He can do anything with an ax,” she replied 
eagerly, “and he is as good a man to work as 
you ever saw ; but sir, it is just as I tell you ; 
everything he tries ends in failure, and I 
can’t see how he is to blame either.” 

The man smiled at the loyal little maid before 
answering, and Kate thought he was the nicest 
looking young man she had ever seen : and when 
he told her a few moments later that he would 
give her father a job at $12.00 a month and 
board until the first of March, her joy knew no 
bounds, and she was sure that he and the cook 
were the nicest men in the world. 

A little later the cook, who seemed to be in a 
conspiracy with the foreman to give them pleas- 
ant news, told them that there was a little house 
about half a mile distant, belonging to a man 
living in the camp, who would let them live in 
it during the winter if they would pay the taxes 
on the land in the spring, which would only 
amount to between four and five dollars ; and 
that Kirt would get a dollar or so a month above 
his board,for his work. 

But Kate thought of Doll, and asked the fore- 
man if she could not work for her board as well ; 
and as she was large and strong, though thin at 


110 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


the present time, he agreed to give her a chance 
to earn her own living; more to please the girl 
than for any need he had of her. But Kate did 
not know this ; her proud spirit would have re- 
volted at charity although she was anxious to 
work herself, and before she left she had the 
promise of some of the camp washing to do. 

The day was pleasant, though keen and cold, 
and at an early hour they drove merrily away 
with the lightest hearts they had known in many 
a day. Doll, too, partook of their high spirits, 
and made the long journey home in much better 
time than they had come the preceding day. 
On their way home they stopped at the house, 
for Kate with her eye for business would not 
agree to anything until she had seen what the 
house was, herself; but found to her delight it 
was just as represented, with a comfortable barn, 
and an excellent well of water, besides. 

The cook, who had scorned her offer of pay- 
ment for their good cheer, bestowed upon them 
a well-filled lunch basket, which upon opening 
they found to contain lunch enough for ten ; for 
there were two whole pies,cakes and doughnuts, 
and a generous supply of bread, butter and cold 
meat. 

They were delighted with the contents, but 
ate only of the meat and bread, wishing to save 
the rest as a treat for their family. At the lit- 
tle mill village they stopped again for a noon 
rest, and Kate invested a good share of her five 
dollars in grain and groceries, buying a pound 
of the best green tea for her mother's comfort. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


111 


It was nearly dark when they reached home. 
It had been a joyous day for the twins, but a 
gloomy one enough for the rest of the family, 
but when they entered, bringing their good 
news, their presence banished the gloom and sad- 
ness of the home and all the scoldings and com- 
plainings which had been treasured up for their 
arrival were forgotten when they had told their 
success ; that is, when Kate told it, for Kirt had 
but little to say as usual. 

Kate soon had the table set with the good 
things from the lunch basket, and her mother 
comforted with her cup of fragrant tea; the 
children revelling w’ith all the cakes they could 
eat, and her father looking like a different man 
with the prospect of steady work before him. 

He had passed the two day*! of their absence 
in a state of anxiety, bordering on hope and 
fear, saying little to anyone ; while Minnie had 
had a severe task in caring for the little ones, 
Irene especially, who rebelled continually at hav- 
ing Kate away, and with her mother, who had 
been in a continual state of nervous apprehen- 
sion, feeling sure that they would be killed be- 
fore they could ever return. 

The Fords were a happy household that night, 
and for the two following weeks were as busy as 
bees, getting ready for their new home. Two 
of the members of the family, besides Doll, were 
sure of their board at least; and the money that 
their father could earn monthly seemed like a 
small fortune to them. Their vegetables they 
were to take with them, and a few days later 


112 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Mr. Ford hired one of Mr. Ray’s strong horse& 
to put beside Doll, and drew a large load of 
furniture including his books to their new home, 
— the twenty-five miles to the camp. Next went 
the vegetables and the remainder of their furnD 
ture; and the third trip the family went, fol- 
lowed by Carlo and old Liny, the cow, leading 
behind. 

It had taken a good share of two weeks to ac- 
complish all this. The neighbors had heard with 
surprise of their intended move, but no one but 
the Rays really knew anything about it. To 
these kind friends Kate had told the circum- 
stances and their future prospects. Mrs. Downs 
and Mrs. Grimes came over to make a farewell 
call, but Kate who had seen them coming was 
prepared for any emergency, and persuaded her 
mother to go with Kirt into the woods while she 
and Minnie did the entertaining. The good 
neighbors were full of talk and questions, but to 
their queries they were answered either in mon- 
osyllables or else not at all, and at last weary- 
ing of obtaining any information they took their 
departure, Mrs. Downs saying in parting that 
she hoped Kate would reform her ways, so as to 
meet her in the other world, if not again in this. 
Then Kate answered, the hot blood flaming her 
cheeks, that as there was an especial place for 
hypocrites and liars, and as she was not either, 
she had no expectations of ever seeing either of 
them again ; and that she should consider it a 
misfortune if she ever did. This was her parting 
with the two worthies. The next day they were 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


113 


in their new home, after a hard day’s journey 
over the frozen roads ; and the tired travellers 
proceeded to set up the stove and unpack the 
dishes and beds as best they could ; but it was a 
very discouraging task getting that supper; the 
girls were sure that they knew just where every- 
thing had been packed, but as a matter of 
course neither knew where anything was, and 
nearly everything had to be handled over before 
they could find what they wanted, and the lit- 
tle clock struck ten before a cup of tea could be 
made or a bite eaten ;then they all tried to make 
themselves comfortable by camping down on 
piles of bedding and straw ticks and keeping a 
fire all night, in order to keep warm. 

The next day Kirt went back for the few re- 
maining things which Doll could draw alone, 
and returned Mr. Ray’s horse. The price of 
Kate’s heifer had paid their transportation to 
their new home, and they had been able to bring 
their chickens and cornstalks with them. 

While he was gone the girls labored diligently 
to bring order out of chaos, and for the first 
time realized what a dreadful thing it is to 


move. 


CHAPTER XI. 


Ct^e HetD fjomc. 

A most busy day was spent straightening the 
house and in making things comfortable, but 
the little board house offered but cramped and 
uncomfortable quarters at best. The two rooms 
had to be utilized for living and sleeping apart- 
ments ; the first room was the kitchen and living 
room while the second room was curtained to 
make two apartments where their beds were set 
up ; one for their parents, and the other for the 
two little girls, while the older girls slept in the 
little loft which they called the chamber, out of 
courtesy. Kirt was to remain at the cook shanty 
all of the time, but Mr. Ford decided to spend 
his nights at home so as to avoid the vermin al- 
ways found in the sleeping bunks of the lumber 
camps, which are built in tiers around the sides 
of the rooms, with the great stove standing in 
the center; around which gathered the many 
workers of the forest when their day’s labor 
was done, and while they dried their socks and 
garments by the roaring fire, made the old log 
walls ring with laughter and gay songs. 

Mr. Ford went cheerfully to work. The fore- 
man provided him with such clothing as was 
114 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


115 


needed, to enable him to work out in the cold 
and snows of winter, and deducted the amount 
from his first month’s wages; but when he came 
in at night with his gaily plaided Mackinaw 
Jacket and pants, felt boots, rubbers and socks, 
and laughingly brushed the soft November 
snow-flakes from his scarlet skull-cap, the chil- 
dren screamed with laughter ; but not so with 
Mrs. Ford. She burst into a tirade of scoldings 
and complainings at the disgrace of his coming 
down to being a camp-rowdy, and dragging her 
off to live in a shanty in the woods, for, she 
wailed, when she was a girl, no one lived in 
shanties but the Irish ; and “I’d never married 
you Andrew Ford, if I had thought you was go- 
ing to bring me to this. You might a’ staid in 
politics, back in Pennsylvany where you be- 
longed, and where I could go to meeting, and 
here there aint a meeting nearer than Norton 
City, and there aint no way of getting there, 
when we live back in the woods like this.” 

The smile died from Mr. Ford’s face at her 
words, and he silently hung up his cap ; but the 
girls, who had been worn out during the day by 
their mother’s complainings of their present sit- 
uation, refusing to see how vastly better it was 
than their former home, had both resolved to 
keep all such unpleasantness from their father, 
and make his home as pleasant as possible, 
hastened to show him the various little comforts 
they had contrived, and tell him the bright lit- 
tle sayings and doings of the day, and soon 
succeeded in banishing all care and sadness 


116 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


from his brow ; and with the little girls in his 
arms, he forgot his troubles and told them sto- 
ries of the woods and the great strong horses, 
until they fell asleep. 

Kirt did finely in his work in the cook-shanty, 
as he was quick and willing to learn, and he 
soon became a general favorite, not only with 
the cook, but with the foreman and men as well; 
who when the day’s work was done gathered 
about him, and listened in rapt attention to the 
violin. The rough life of the camp did not in- 
jure the boy; his nature was too pure to fall 
in with vice readily, and as he had an instinc- 
tive horror of anything low and mean he came 
through the ordeal unscathed ; and althor.gh the 
men did not know or realize it,yet they were the 
better men for his being there. 

So busy were they all that the winter passed 
so swiftly as to be almost unnoticed. The girls 
secured washing enough to bring them in about 
five dollars a month, and this amount enabled 
them to buy a supply of warm clothing for 
themselves and the little girls. Mr. Ford’s 
wages provided for their table and for the cow 
and chickens, leaving a little besides for cloth- 
ing ; and taking everything into consideration, 
notwithstanding that they were still miserably 
poor, yet they w^ere the best off they had been 
in years ; and all were content, that is, all but 
the mother, who poor woman, with her failing 
mind, could not appreciate their present bless- 
ings and longed for something unattainable. 

They were in another county, and Minnie 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


117 


found spare time to study for the approaching 
examination in hopes of obtaining a school in 
the spring. One Sunday when Kirt was home 
he said to his sisters : 

“Did you know, girls, that Foreman Dick’s 
name is Graves, Richard Graves?” 

“No,” they both exclaimed in a breath, and 
Kite added that she always thought his name 
was Dick, as everyone called him that. 

“I did not know it either, until lately,” said 
Kirt; “the other day when Mr. Norton was out 
there I heard him call him Mr. Graves, and I’ll 
bet a cent that he is some relation to that lady 
who came to our house. And did you know 
that the Leslie Home is here in Norton City? I 
heard Mr. Norton speaking of that too.” 

“No, ’’answered Kate, “I did not know that 
the Home was here ; but I shouldn’t wonder if 
he was some relation to that lady. It has al- 
ways been a mystery to me, why he was so good 
to give pa a job when they had more men than 
they wanted then; but I guess he is not sorry, 
for pa has been good help.” 

“Yes, and Mr. Norton is a kind man too,” 
assented Kirt. “I believe Dick had heard of 
us before. The boy’s all think that there is no 
one like him.” 

Minnie looked up a little shyly and said : “We 
like him too but we never see him except the rare 
occasions when he has been here, as we never go 
to the camp ;but last week when I did his wash- 
ing I mended one of his shirt sleeves, and he sent 
me this little book by papa,” and she held up 


118 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


a pretty volume of poems for her brother to 
see. 

Kirt took the book in his hand. “That’s just 
like him ; he is the right kind even if he is a 
Camp fellow,” glancing slyly at his mother as 
he spoke. 

The months wore away ; months of steady work 
and contentment ; although the united earnings 
of the family were less than twenty dollars a 
month, they were happy. The girls had developed 
into good housekeepers, and were making 
rapid progress in cooking, thanks to the cook’s 
kind instructions, on days when he could leave 
the camp for an hour or so afternoons ; and many 
had been the broken loaves of bread, pieces of 
cake and pie, which had found their way to their 
household instead of going to waste as formerly ; 
favors which aided their slender purse greatly. 

But with the waning of winter, came a break 
of the camp’s industry; soon it was to break 
up for the summer, and for good, as all their 
timber had been cut, and the little family would 
soon be without an income again. Mr. Ford 
talked of going away, the same old story, and 
the twins and Minnie felt considerably disheart- 
ened over the prospect, but Kate decided to go 
and see the cook and ask his advice as to their 
future course; and choosing an hour when she 
knew that he would be at liberty she went over 
to talk to him. She did not ask her father’s ad- 
vice, for she knew from past experience that he 
would wait for something to turn up; but she be- 
lieved in turning things up themselves, as she 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


119 


grimly expressed herself to her two counsellors* 

She did not hesitate to tell her friend her 
trouble, for the man had always a kind word and 
helpful deed for the “Little hustler,” as he called 
the girl. He listened to her quietly, then said: 

“I think I understand your necessities quite 
well. Your father is a good worker, and if you 
were on a good farm you could make a living. 
Now, I know of a place about a mile from here, 
towards town ; you know where it is, — the old 
Stone place they call it ; a good frame house and 
barn on the left hand side of the road; rather 
lonely, but a good place. The owner is a widow, 
and lives in Ludington, where my home is. Her 
husband died some ten years ago, and as she 
couldn't live there alone she went to the city 
and dressmakes. She has tried to sell the place 
all these years but there hasn’t been much sale 
for land hereabouts, and now the fences are all 
tumbling down, and the house is getting out of 
repair, but I think she would be glad to rent the 
place to anyone who would keep it in repair,and 
ask nothing but the taxes. There used to be a 
nice little orchard, and it used to raise a pile of 
stuff when Ike was alive, but it is going to ruin 
fast enough now. 

“But do you think she would let us go on the 
place for that?” the girl inquired eagerly. 

“Yes, I do,” he answered. “I will write to her 
to-day and send the letter down by the engineer 
to-morrow morning when he makes his first trip 
to Norton City with the logs.” 

“But please do not say a word to pa about it,un- 


\ 


120 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


til you hear from her. Kirt won’t say anything 
about it, either ; but pa would be sure to say not 
to do anything about it, for he surely is going 
to leave in a few weeks and go either east or 
west, north or south, up or down, or somewhere 
or other, and Minnie and I will have to see what 
we can do if there is anything done.” 

The man laughed. He understood Mr. Ford’s 
disposition and saw that he was like a piece of 
machinery that worked well when there was a 
power behind it, but that he had little ability to 
start off for himself, but he saw in the girl a very 
capable little engineer, and he wished to help 
her accordingly ; so he promised to say nothing 
regarding their plans and Kate went home re- 
joicing to tell her good news to Minnie. 

A week later and they were surprised one ev- 
ening by a call from Mr. Graves, and after chat- 
ting for a few moments, he told Minnie that 
when he was home the Sunday before his father 
had told him that he was in search of a teacher, 
and that he had told him of Minnie ; and that 
he thought if Minnie would drive over there, some 
ten miles distant, the following Wednesday 
afternoon that she could have the school. “Doll 
is suffering for exercise,” he said, “and you can 
easily make it in a day.” 

Minnie was delighted. She had just passed 
another successful examination and she and Kate 
were on the point of looking for schools again 
but were saved the task by Mr. Graves’ kindness. 
He also gave Kate a letter from Mrs. Stone, 
saying they could have the place for the necessary 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


121 


repairs and paying the taxes; and with these two. 
pieces of good news the girls went to bed almost 
too delighted to sleep. 

Mr. Ford was easily persuaded to try his luck 
at farming once more, for a year at least, as long 
as he could have all the fertilizer he needed from 
the camp, simply by hauling it ; so the bargain 
was concluded at once, and by the time the camp 
had broken up the Fords had moved once more. 

A pleasant surprise awaited Minnie on going 
to her school, for Mr. and Mrs. Graves were the 
same people who had called upon them when 
they lived in the Higgins’ settlement ; and then 
they learned for the first time of their earnest 
sympathy for them, and that their son had heard 
Kate’s pitiful story that night, and knowing of 
them before had made a place for them in the 
camp. This was good news to them, but the best 
of all was when Mr. Graves quickly engaged 
Minnie to teach the school, four months, at 
twenty-five dollars a month, letting her board 
with them during the term; and the girls went 
away feeling rich indeed. 

The first of April found them in their new 
home, and Minnie in the school room. And 
although the plastering was broken in many 
places, the once neatly papered walls and 
white-washed ceiling yellow with neglect and 
age, yet to Kate’s inexperienced eyes the cozy 
house with its bay-window in the parlor was a 
marvel of beauty; and by exercising all of her 
ingenuity and taste she made the little rooms 
look quite cozy and home-like. With the aid of 


122 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


glue-pot and varnish she mended and re- 
freshed what broken furniture she could, and 
persuaded her father to put together many of 
the broken wrecks of their past grandeur, and 
soon had a better furnished and more home-like 
house than they had known before in years, for 
there they had plenty of room above, as well as 
below. 

Kirt and her father were very busy those 
bright spring days repairing the fences and in 
putting in the early crops, utilizing as much land 
as they could possibly work, preparatory for 
another season of prosperity ; and as Kate stood 
in the little porch and watched them at work in 
the clean broad fields sloping gently to the south 
and east, she thought it was the pleasantest spot in 
the world to live; so totally unlike their former 
home, and so much freer from frost in its hilly 
location than the flat muggy lands of the Higgins 
settlement. The scene was not really more 
beautiful than that of her former home, but to 
her eyes, lit with hope and happiness, it was the 
fairest spot on earth. The sandy road which 
lay like yellow ribbon through the first velvety 
green of spring stretching towards town, under 
the budding trees filled with singing birds, gave 
her a hope that in its course lay prosperity for 
them. Everything about her home filled her 
heart with delight, especially the sweet, pure 
air laden with the scent of early flowers; and 
she thought with a prayer of thanksgiving on 
her lip, what a beautiful thing it was to be young 
in the springtime of the year. From the win- 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


12a 


dow the best view only gave them the pine, 
choppings from which came the many clangings 
of cowbells, as the sleek cattle of the town 
roamed at will getting their living from the 
wild pony grass of the plains ; and as she 
watched them she wished there was some- 
thing that she could do to earn a living for her- 
self aside from staying at home. 

“If I could only do something to help,” she 
mused , “but there seems to be nothing for me ta 
do, only to keep the house, help out in the field a 
little and go for Liny at night. Now if I could 
sew; but I can’t. I can’t even make my own 
clothing decently ; and I can’t be spared to go 
from home to do housework ; and so I must 
stay here and earn nothing, and I know very 
well that the fifteen dollars pa has ahead won’t 
last very long to buy seed and keep us a-going 
and I do not like to think of Minnie’s providing 
for us all, though she is willing to do it, but 
she needs so many things for herself ; but if we 
can live through it until we get our crops gath- 
ered we shall be all right.” But a little shade of 
anxiety had settled on her face which did not 
lift for some time, and as she worked she pon- 
dered and wondered what she could do to hasten 
their prosperity. 

It was the fifth of May. Just a year from the 
day she had had her awakening,and as she dished 
up a great dish of creamy bean soup for their 
dinner, she was dreamily thinking of the past, 
and of the change which a year had wrought, 
when her father’s voice at the door startled her 


124 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


from her reverie. “Kate!” he was saying, 
“here’s a gentleman who has lost his cow; she 
has been gone for a week, and he says he can- 
not get any trace of her ; and I told him that I 
thought you could find her and fetch her in before 
night.” 

“I!” Kate turned in surprise, “I! why pa, I 
never saw the cow ; and how do you suppose I 
could get her if I had? I would not know w’'here 
to look.” 

“Of course you don’t, but you know all about 
these pine choppings for only last night you said 
you believed you knew every cattle haunt for 
five miles around, as Liny has led you a pretty 
chase several times.” 

“Well, I think she does,” assented the girl, 
“I think she takes a new road every day, but 
that’s no sign that I could find his cow,” she 
added as the stranger entered the room with 
her father ; a middle-aged man with the unmis- 
takable air of a gentleman. 

Kate offered him a chair, then proceeded to take 
up the rest of the dinner. Her father offered 
him a seat at the table, and much to the girl’s 
horror, he accepted and ate heartily of the bean 
soup and bread, pronouncing it the best dinner 
he had had in months. During the meal he 
described his fine Jersey cow, telling how highly 
he valued her ; and as he rose from the table he 
told Kate that if she would bring her in he 
would give her two dollars for trying and five 
dollars if she succeeded ; for he was no other 
than Mr. Norton, the owner of the camps, and the 
largest mills in the city. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


125 


The prospect of earning so much money was 
a tempting bait to the girl, and as soon as the 
dinner work was disposed of she coaxed Irene 
to sleep, and as soon as the child was quiet she 
strapped a blanket securely on Doll’s back, 
mounted her and was off on her search for Mr. 
Norton’s valuable cow. 


CHAPTEE XII. 


S^atd\ foe tl?e Com. 

In the pine regions of the northwest, the tiust- 
ling little towns spring up in the forest which is 
quickly cut away, leaving a desolate background 
of choppings on the barrens, as they are called ; 
and it was through these pine choppings which 
skirted Norton City on nearly every side that 
Kate had to search for the cow among the herds 
of city cattle and farmers’ cows, all of which 
roamed at their own sweet will during the day, 
to be gathered in at night and returned to their 
respective owners by the boys who had them in 
charge. 

Doll galloped swiftly on, where the path per- 
mitted, or else picked her way carefully over 
fallen logs and around brush heaps, until Kate 
had crossed and recrossed several sections near 
her home, following the winding cattle paths 
which radiated in every direction, examining 
each herd of cattle for the missing creature, 
mounting every hill and listening with strained 
ear for every tinkle of a bell and watching for 
any sign of a distant herd. She judged that 
the missing cow had probably joined one of the 
farmer’s herds on the other side of the town, and 
126 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


127 


after she had satisfied herself that she was not 
among the town cattle, she left the plains near 
her home and skirted the town, taking the path 
over the hills, and came to a part of the country 
where she had never been. 

As the cow had been missing for a number of 
days, she felt quite sure of recognizing her among 
other cattle by the swollen condition of her 
udder. The afternoon was quite far advanced, 
and she was several miles from home in a deso- 
late stretch of the choppings, when she came 
upon a small herd of young cattle, and among 
them the creature for which she was in search ; 
a small, graceful creature of a light fawn color 
with evident marks of pure blood, but as wild 
as a deer, for when the girl wheeled Doll and 
took a path for the purpose of heading her 
toward the road, she broke into a run, starting 
toward the hill with the whole drove following 
her in hot pursuit. 

Now began a race to see who would come out 
ahead — the truant cow, or the determined girl. 
Kate gave Doll free rein, and holding on firmly, 
kept her seat, as the horse leaped logs and brush 
in her rush across the plains to prevent the cow 
from reaching the hills. By an adroit movement 
the girl headed her off, and then began another 
race back toward the road, the cow being filled 
with a spirit of contrariness, going just the op- 
posite direction from whac the girl wanted; but 
she was obliged to let her take her own course, 
which finally led her in the road. Kate fol- 
fowed until she came to the first house where a 


128 


KATE FORD'S FAMILY 


man was working in the garden. Riding up to 
him she asked him about the cow, which was 
feeding quietly by the side of the road. 

‘Tt isn’t mine,” he said, coming down to the 
road, “she has been with my cattle about four 
days and I would have milked her if I could have 
caught her; she needs it badly enough.” 

“Well,” Kate answered, “she is the one I 
want and will you please help me catch her? She 
belongs to Mr. Norton, and I’ve been hunting 
her for him.” 

“We’ll try,” agreed the farmer, and letting 
down the barnyard bars, he coaxed the young 
cattle in with salt. Kate retreated, and after 
some hesitation the stray cow decided to go in 
too ; but after she had eaten her salt she was 
alert and watchful and gave them a pretty chase 
until she was finally cornered and a rope put on 
her horns. 

The farmer eyed her doubtfully. “Now you’ve 
got her,” he said, ‘T don’t know what you are 
going to do with her. She won’t lead, and she’ll 
jerk away from you in a jiffy.” 

“I guess she won’t,” said Kate confidently. 
“Give me the rope, please, ” and as she spoke she 
led Doll forward, and securely knotted the cow’s 
rope into the blanket girt. 

The man looked on in admiration. “By gin- 
ger!” he exclaimed, “but it would take a woman 
to think of that! you’re plucky not to be afraid 
of her. There are not many girls but what would 
think twice before going up to a cow like that. 
But she may hook your horse with those sharp 
horns of hers before you get to town.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


129 


‘‘I am not afraid of cows,'’ laughed Kate, 
‘‘but I am not going to ride. I shall walk be- 
tween them, holding the rope close to her horns, 
and if she tries to hook, why Doll knows how to 
use her heels. That’s all. How far is it to 
town?” 

“Pretty near five miles. You must hurry if 
you’re going to walk, for it will be dark before 
you get there. Keep straightahead.” 

Kate thanked him for his assistance and 
started on, while he stood and watched her, mar- 
velling at her grit and determination. By walk- 
ing between the two animals, and holding the 
cow firmly by the head she succeeded in getting 
the unruly creature along; but at times her 
movements were decidedly erratic, for she would 
try to start forward, and would career madly 
around the horse’s head, but the sharp blows 
from Kate’s hickory stick would bring her back 
to her place again. Then she would try to run, 
but Doll understanding her capers, would settle 
back on her haunches with so much force that 
she would be brought to a standstill. Holding 
back herself was no better, for Doll would in- 
stantly break into a trot, dragging her along 
willy-nilly, and so the first two miles were cov- 
ered before the cow made up her mind to behave 
herself, weary of her fruitless efforts, and give 
Kate a chance to breathe. 

The poor girl was 'wearied nearly to death, 
but she kept along bravely. Her shoes, which 
only by careful mending she had been able to 
keep on her feet for the last few weeks, were 


130 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


tattered and ruined. Her calico dress, new in 
the winter, was in a dilapidated condition, fringed 
around the bottom and torn in several places, 
utterly ruined by h^r wild ride through the 
slashings. 

She came at last in sight of the town, gilded 
in the rays of the setting sun, and looking very 
fair and peaceful to her tired eyes. She rested 
a few moments by the side of a little brook, 
watered the horse and cow, and bathed her 
heated face and hands, smoothing back her 
wmvy red-brown hair and braiding it as best 
she could. 

‘‘I am a pretty looking object,” she thought 
disconsolately, “to go into town looking like 
this ; but I am in for it and I shall have to go 
ahead now. What would Minnie say if she 
could see me? she is prouder than she is hand- 
some any day; and for her life she wouldn’t 
have dared gone for this cow. It is as much as 
she ever will do to go near old Liny, who 
wouldn’t harm a kitten. But I guess I am like 
those two frogs that fell into the milk-can. One 
of them was discouraged and fell to the bottom 
and drowned; the other kept on kicking in try- 
ing to get out until he kicked up a little pat of 
butter, on which he sat until he could get out. 
I am the kicking frog for I’ve kicked for a year 
to get out of the can, and here I am with a horse 
and a cow, torn dress, and ragged shoes, to go 
into town ; but I might as well go ahead for 
there is no backing out now,” and mustering all 
the courage she possessed she started forward, 
walking between her unique companions. 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


131 


But as she plodded up the street, lined on both 
sides with pretty, tasteful houses and thronged 
with people of all classes who eyed her curiously, 
her face tingled with shame and she felt as if 
she would never be able to get to the fashionable 
part of the town where Mr. Norton lived ; but 
by threading the alley ways, and avoiding the 
principal streets she reached the street where he 
lived, but was obliged to traverse nearly its 
length before she reached his home ; but here 
she experienced her greatest annoyance, for the 
street was full of children who laughingly called 
her the cow-bell as she passed along. But she 
kept quietly ahead, hurrying to keep pace with 
the cow whose ambition quickened as she came 
near her stable, until she reached his elegant 
residence. An alley way offered her a road to 
the barns, and down that she disappeared from 
the sight of the people, finding the stable-boy 
at the door, who recognized the cow and took 
her in charge. 

She dropped wearily into a seat, while the boy 
went for Mr. Norton, returning in a few moments, 
saying that the gentleman wished her to come 
in the house. Kate's heart sank within her. 
This was a worse trial than leading the cow 
through the streets ; but she followed the boy 
without a word into the house, and into the 
dining-room where the great man sat at the table. 

He greeted her courteously, and presented her 
to his wife, who invited her to tea; but Kate de- 
clined, for although ravenously hungry she 
would not sit at the table, dressed as she 


132 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


was, with them. It was had enough to be in 
their elegant room. She was so ill at ease that 
Mr. Norton did not urge her again, but asked 
her about her trip and praised her heartily for 
her success, which she told as briefly as possible, 
making but little of her long hard ride. 

“You are worth more than all the cattle herd- 
ers in town,” he said warmly, “and here is your 
money which you have richly earned. I do not 
believe there was another girl or woman in town 
who would have dared to do as you have done.” 

“I am not afraid of cattle,” she answered 
simply, “and as you wanted me to find her, I 
was glad to do it, for I wanted to earn somethings 
and I can’t go away from home.” 

“No, I see how it is; your mother isn’t well, 
and the two little girls need a good deal of care. 
Wife, it was a capital dinner she gave me to-day. 
I wish you would come here and teach our girl 
how to make such bean-soup. I never ate bet- 
ter,” he said heartily. 

Kate flushed with pleasure as she answered: 
“I was ashamed not to have better, but I only 
know how to cook a few things, and that is one 
of them.” 

“Better do a few things well than many ill,” 
assented the lady; “he has spoken several times 
of your nice dinner, and he was just saying that 
he wished you would take charge of our cow. 
The boys make such wretched work. Several 
times she has come home bruised, and it was 
only through neglect that she got away this 
time.” 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


133 


“Yes; that is just what I wish you would do. 
She could feed near your home with your cow, 
and if you could get a few other cattle 1 think 
you could make it pay. If you will take charge 
of my cow next Monday, I will see some of my 
neighbors, and get them to let you take their 
cows. In the west, you know, women become 
famous as cattle-herders and I think you would 
make a success of it, as it would be earning at 
home. What do you say? it will give you a 
chance for a little money for your self.” 

Kate thought a moment. “It isn’t for my- 
self only that I want to earn. It is to help get 
ahead and not leave so much for my sister 
Minnie to do. Yes, I will do it, Mr. Norton, any- 
way I’ll try it. I am not ashamed of being 
poor and I will do anything that is honorable, 
but I would be ashamed of being lazy.” 

“You are a brave girl,” said Mr. Norton ap- 
provingly. “I have two cows, and I can safely 
promise you two more. Be here by six next 
Monday morning. I paid the boy seventy-five 
-cents for the two, but I will give you a dollar 
for them during each week of the season.” 

Kate went away with a light heart. At the 
first dry goods store she stopped and bought 
gingham enough for another skirt to take the 
place of the torn one she had on. Apart of her 
five dollars went for a pair of shoes, also a sack 
of wheat flour and a bushel of oats. 

“But where shall we put all these?” said the 
clerk doubtfully, “you can’t carry them all on 
horseback. Where shall we send them?” 


34 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


“I can take them,” she answered; “if you 
will get a bag and put the flour into one end and 
the oats in another, and sugar enough on the 
flour side to balance the oats, then it can lay 
across my lap safely.” 

“Seven pounds of sugar will do it,” and the 
clerk swung the bag and she rode slowly to- 
ward home, feeling very light-hearted and 
happy over her afternoon’s work, and wishing 
that she might earn as much every day, but she 
wondered a little grimly what her mother would 
say to her herding cows. 

“If I am like the frog in the milk can,” she 
soliloquized, “I have kicked up a bigger pat of 
butter than I ever imagined I could.” 


CHAPTER XIII. 


Kate as a (Eattlc'i^erber. 

The whole Ford household was in a turmoil. 
Mrs. Ford’s indignation knew no bounds. It 
would only add another disgrace to her family 
which had already so much to hear, owing to 
Mr. Ford having left politics and Pennsylvania, 
and now when she was near a meeting which 
she could attend by exerting herself, to have 
Kate talk of herding cows was more than flesh 
and blood could stand calmly. 

Minnie too, who was spending her Sunday at 
home was quite indignant. She did not think, 
now she was earning, that there was any need 
of Kate doing such boyish work, and she was 
willing to do with little herself and help the 
family until they were better o & ; anything and 
everything rather than have Kate take charge of 
the cattle. Even Mr. Ford was doubtful of her 
success and tried to dissuade her from under- 
taking it, although he was immensely proud of 
her spirit and horsemanship. 

Kirt was the only , one who fell in with her 
plans and agreed to do all that he could to 
help, offering to go for the cattle himself. 
“Only,” he added, “as I can’t ride half as 
135 


136 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


well as you can, or manage a cow either as well, 
I am afraid that I could not make it pay alone.” 

‘T wish you all could see it as I do said the 
girl impatiently after she had listened to every 
possible objection over and over again. ‘‘Minnie 
says it isn’t lady-like, and that it will bring me 
into notoriety and make people make fun of me, 
and the boys all call me ‘cow-bell’ again. For 
the latter I do not care, as I shall go along 
minding my own business ; and all that I will 
have to do will be to drive the cows up the 
streets night and morning, and put them in their 
stalls, and during the day they can feed here on 
the Plains and will be but very little trouble. 
Minnie says it isn’t lady-like. Well, I know 
herding cows isn’t exactly the work ladies do, 
but as I shall ride Doll, it won’t look as bad as 
if I walked ; and it’s a lot more honorable than 
letting my sister, w^ho only gets twenty-five 
dollars a month, and pays her board out of that, 
support the family until pa can get some money 
from his crops next fall; and I’d like to know, 
Minnie Ford, how far you expect your sixty- 
eight dollars will go towards getting the clothes 
both you and I need, to say nothing of ma and 
the children, besides providing the groceries, 
and getting the other things we need ; when you 
know as well as I that we are so poor that we 
haven’t a half dozen whole dishes hardly and 
the other day when Mr. Norton was here, I had 
to have the bean soup dished up in a pan, and 
everyone of us but him ate it out of tin dishes, 
and he had the only bowl we have. I was 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


137 


ashamed enough to sink, but I had to stand it. 
Kow, I am tired of being so poor, and as I can’t 
possibly go away from home to earn, and I have 
this chance to earn something, I am going to try 
it. Sink or swim, live or die, I shall try the 
work Monday, so there!” she added dramatical- 

ly- 

Her father laughed. Her speech had won 
him to her way of thinking. Minnie said noth- 
ing; she saw the reason in her sister’s remarks, 
but her pride revolted at having her undertake 
such unusual work for girls. Mrs. Ford was 
indignant, and at the girl’s remarks about being 
so poor, she added parenthetically that they ought 
to be resigned to being so poor, for the wicked 
flourished like a green bay tree, and the “Lord 
loveth those whom he chasteneth.” 

‘‘Then upon my soul !” Kate ejaculated angrily, 
“we must be especial favorites, for it has been 
nothing but chastening ever since I can re- 
member.” 

Mr. Ford and Minnie laughed outright. Kirt 
whistled to hide his merriment, and Mrs. Ford 
burst into tears, declaring that she always knew 
that the girl would go to perdition, and that she 
could do nothing to stop it, and that she was 
taking Irene with her too. 

Kate softened at her mother’s tears, and prom- 
ised her that the first money she could spare 
she would use in getting her a decent dress 
and other articles, so that she could go to 
the chapel in the town when she wished to. 

As she expected, she carried her point, and 


138 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


early Monday morning she and Kirt started out» 
They lived a little over two miles from the town, 
and Kirt walked briskly on beside Doll while 
Kate chatted merrily over the prospects of add- 
ing to the family’s income, arriving at Mr. 
Norton’s about six, taking out his two cows, 
and four more in the neighborhood, which the 
chore-boy told them Mr. Norton had secured 
for them ; so instead of two they drove out six 
cows that morning. But they soon discovered 
that driving six cows through the streets of a 
town dotted with green lawns was no easy task, 
for the creatures showed no intention of keep- 
ing in the middle of the streets nor of turning 
the right corners ; but Kate rode along at the 
side, keeping a little in advance and reaching 
the turns first, and at last they succeeded with 
Carlo’s aid in getting them safely out of town 
without receiving more than half a dozen scold- 
ings from property owners who held all cattle 
herders and cattle in especial abomination, and 
considered that the drivers did not care how 
much damage their cattle did by trampling over 
the velvety lawns, or cropping the tempting 
shrubbery; for sad to say these well-meaning 
people knew but little of the mischievous dispo- 
sition of the mild-eyed bovine. 

Kate was tired and nervous when at last she 
reached home, and Doll was chafing at her bit 
with vexation ; and in her equine brain she knew 
that she had been careered around on the gallop 
more than a hundred times since they started. 
Kirt’s legs were aching from their unaccustomed 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


139 


exercise, and the sweat ran down his face in 
streams. 

“By Jove, Kate!” he exclaimed as he mopped 
his brow, “that’s the hardest work I ever did. 
I guess that you and I will earn the three dollars- 
we receive from this week’s work.” 

“You’re right. We surely will,” assented the 
girl as she slipped from Doll’s back and removed 
the blanket, “but they won’t act that way when 
they learn just which way to go. But I must 
have a saddle just as quick as I can earn one, 
for I have nearly broken my neck and back too 
a dozen times this morning.” 

“But you didn’t fall,” said the boy in surprise. 

“Of course I didn’t fall,” she retorted, “but 
you get on that horse sideways, just as I do, 
and turn such sharp corners, be running Doll 
one minute and walking the next, holding your- 
self to the horse by the muscles of your back 
and limbs, and all the time be thinking about 
those pesky cows and every fretful old man and 
woman on the street, and I guess you had rather 
go a foot.” 

Kirt laughed. “There,Kate, that’s more com^ 
plaining than I ever heard you do before; but I 
know you need a saddle, and just as soon as wo 
get ten dollars you shall have one.” 

When they came in sight of the house, Mr. 
Ford came to meet them driving old Liny , and 
was all interest to know how they had suc- 
ceeded. Kate made no complaints to him, and 
the whole family thought better of her business 
now she had made a beginning. 


140 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Kirt, with Carlo, was to spend the day watch- 
ing them in the choppings, while Mr. Ford 
worked alone in the fields. Kate returned to the 
house and after an hour’s rest did the house- 
work although she was sore in every muscle. 

At five o’clock she was on Doll’s back, and 
helped Kirt drive the cattle towards town. They 
went very quietly, sobered by the day’s feeding, 
and contented themselves with giving each other 
sly digs in the ribs with their sharp horns, 
or else trying their strength with locked horiis, 
only to be parted by a sharp blow from the whip. 
When they entered the town the streets were 
full, and Kate felt the same embarrassment she 
had when she led home Mr. Norton’s cow, 
for everyone seemed to be looking at her, and 
the small boys hooted again at the ‘‘cow bell,” 
but she looked neither to the right nor left, 
but went ahead as if she owned the town. But, 
poor girl, she was soon to realize that it is far 
different to be a Cattle Queen of the West, than 
to be a cattle herder of the Western Pine City, 
but her dauntless spirit and independent nature 
oame to her aid. and by the first of the follow- 
ing week she had fifteen cows to her credit, and 
by the first of June they drove a herd of thirty 
cows from the town each morning at an income 
of fifteen dollars a week. 

The kind words of encouragement she received 
from her fast increasing list of patrons greatly 
encouraged her, and the gratifying prospect of 
doing well, carried her beyond minding the scoff- 
ings of the thoughtless or the cold stares of the 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


141 


haughty. Nothing succeeds like success, and af- 
ter a few weeks of patient work Kate found 
that she was winning the respect of the better 
class of people, and that her work though hard 
and arduous was winning her friends ; but the 
best of it all was, they were having plenty of 
money, and were adding many comforts to their 
home. 

Kirt watched them all day in their feedings, 
and seated on a high stump whiled away the 
long sunny hours with his violin, while faithful 
Carlo kept the cattle in range ; but when tl;e heat 
of the noon hour came on, and the cattle had 
sought the shady banks of the grassy pond, and 
lay down contentedly chewing their cuds, then 
he would fling himself on the grass and dream 
the time away. It was an ideal life for the boy 
who loved both music and solitude, and in fine 
weather his life was all that he might ask for ; 
but when the days were dark and rainy and he 
was obliged to leave his violin at home and sit 
beneath his umbrella all day it was not so pleas- 
ant, but he whistled and sang, making the best 
of his discomforts. 

As their herd increased, Mr. Ford went with 
them to town nights and mornings, attending to 
his work on the farm during the day. The steady 
prosperity which had followed the family ever 
since their move, had encouraged his ambition 
and he worked cheerfully and well ; a respect- 
able suit of clothes once more, and plenty of 
well-cooked nourishing food had made a man of 
him, and he laid aside his dreams of tariff-re- 


142 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


form, and contented himself with enlightening 
his neighbors on political subjects; he was fast 
becoming a respected authority on such subjects 
in the neighborhood. 

The change was as great in Kate as in any of 
them. She was then in her seventeenth year, 
and had laid aside her old tom-boy ways. Her 
association with business people was fast ma- 
turing her into a woman with a mature business- 
like way which was vastly becoming ; and 
although her face wore a healthy shade of tan, 
yet the sparkle of her bright dark eyes and her 
quick winning smile won her many friends. She 
was quite tall and graceful, and she sat Doll in 
her new saddle as easily as any cow-boy ever 
rode. Her coarse blue denim dress fitted her 
slender figure perfectly. It was the first dress 
she had ever had made, but she was determined 
to have at least one dress made right, and as it 
had to answer for both street and riding cos- 
tumes she felt some pride in its appearance ; al- 
though it was of coarse material in order to 
stand the wear and tear of the swift rounding- 
up of the cattle over fallen trees and logs and 
among the brush of the choppings. 

Doll had readily learned the business and 
easily brought the cattle into line without the 
touch of the rein, leaving her rider free to use 
her long-lashed whip over the backs of the lag- 
gards. She was growing fat and sleek; having 
plenty of grain and the best of feed, for as she 
earned the most of the living she was not stinted 
in the least. She repaid it well in her strength 
and endurance. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


143 


Kate did the business of the family and was 
fast becoming an adept in collecting small bills. 
She did the marketing also, carrying home at 
night what articles she could on horseback ; and 
often driving her cattle into town with a basket 
of eggs on her arm, priding herself on not break- 
ing one. 

Life ran smoothly for her during the season ; 
in sunshine or in storm she was always on time ; 
and though the discomforts of her life were 
many she scarcely heeded them, for all were 
earning and the little children were assured of 
the comforts of life. 

Haying time had come again, and they had a 
goodly amount of hay stored in the barn and 
fine growing crops outside. One day in the be- 
ginning of August every one but Kate was sur- 
prised to see a farmer drive up and unload three 
fine pigs into the sty. “Why child,” exclaimed 
her father in surprise, “what on earth are you 
going to do with them? you know how your 
mother has always acted about hogs, refusing 
to have one on the place.” 

“That I care nothing about,” the girl an- 
swered loftily. “I am a business woman, and 
do not expect to get rich by sentiment. We 
would have been better ofP long ago, pa, if you 
would have used your own judgment .a little. I 
got these pigs cheap, and I intend to have two 
of them salted down for winter and the other 
kept. Now that Liny is fresh and the calf 
weaned, they can have the milk and will do 
nicely. We can’t afford to pay twelve cents a 


144 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


pound for salt pork ; and we used to never have 
lard or fresh meat unless our neighbors gave us 
a little, till this summer ; and next winter when 
we won’t be earning we won’t be able to buy all 
our meat either. Now that I earn a share of the 
living I shall do all I can to make it honest and 
to get ahead, and we shall raise pigs and calves 
and chickens, herd cows, and care for the crops 
until we have enough to buy this farm ; and I 
might as well tell you that I want to buy that 
speckled cow of Lee’s. We can get her for 
twenty dollars, as they are going to move and 
want to sell badly. She will give milk all win- 
ter. Now you needn’t say that we won’t have 
hay enough, for we will ; we have five tons in 
the barn, and plenty of cornstalks, and corn 
enough besides to fat the pigs and feed the 
chickens, and I guess we shall save enough this 
summer to buy Doll’s grain, but it has taken al- 
most everything to get the things we needed, for 
we needed so many things.” 

Mr. Ford looked at her admiringly as she 
talked in her pompous fashion, as mature as if 
she was a capitalist with a fortune in her hands. 

“What a business head you have, Kate ! you 
are like my sister Eliza. She could always see 
where to make a dollar ; but you are nothing of 
a scholar as Minnie is; or a dreamer like Kirt.” 

“If I was I believe we would starve,” she 
interrupted dryly. Her father laughed and 
went on : 

“Yes, we have done well, little girl, and I 
think we shall come out all right ; for we have 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


145 


two months more to earn with the cattle, and at 
the end of that time I shall have some crops to 
turn off. You three children have helped amaz- 
ingly.” 

‘‘Yes, I know. Guess ma isn’t sorry now 
that she had a big family. Minnie used all of 
her wages in getting clothing for us girls and 
ma, and bedding and dishes ; and although we 
haven’t anything nice to wear yet, nor anything 
but a cheap set of dishes yet we are the best off 
we’ve ever been; and we have that little 
road-cart, and a new harness for Doll, and a 
good shepherd dog which we had to have to help 
Carlo, although he did cost ten dollars; and 
each of us three have had good rain-coats, as 
we had to be out in all weathers, and, you and 
Kirt have good clothes besides, and we have all 
had a good living. O ! the money has all* gone 
in some useful way, but it would take another 
summer just like this to give us money ahead.” 

“Yes; and a buggy, so that your mother could 
go to ‘meeting.’ She won’t ride in the road- 
cart ; thinks it wicked ; and as for the lumber- 
wagon, the only other means we had, that is out 
of the question.” 

“Yes; I know, the road-cart is sinful, but we 
could not afford anything else. She will have 
to wait a spell. Minnie says she will buy a 
cutter this winter, and then she can go to the 
Chapel if she wants to; but I shan’t go with her 
for I am too full of sin. Let’s go in, pa, Minnie 
has dinner ready, and I want to tell ma about 
the pigs. Don’t say a word. I’ll manage 


146 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


it. ITl tell her this is the firm of ‘Kate & Co.,’ 
and she will have to agree.” 

The summer waned into autumn, and Minnie 
went back to her school and Kate once more put 
the washing out, as she could not do that work 
and take care of the cattle too. Mrs. Graves 
had been all that a mother could be to her ; and 
besides had taught her how to sew neatly, and 
great was her pride when she was able to make 
pretty dresses for the little girls, and sew on 
plain clothes for the rest of the family. As for 
Foreman Dick, she said but little about him, 
only blushing rosy red whenever his name was 
mentioned ; and Kate seeing the symptoms would 
shrug her .shoulders disdainfully. One day she 
said a little spitefully : 

“Well, Minnie can fall in love if she wants to, 
and get married as soon as she pleases, but I 
have no time for such foolishness, for I have 
got a family on my hands.” 

“Shame on you, Kate Ford,” Minnie retorted 
almost crying. “You know that if I can save 
my money this year I am going to school years 
before I marry any one; and you don’t have the 
family to support either. If you hadn’t such a 
mean tongue your friends would all be glad.” 

Kate made no reply to this outburst, but went 
on scrubbing the floor with great energy, while 
Minnie returned to her sewing with dignified 
silence. 

When the first snowflakes fell and the cows 
were driven home for the last time, the family 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


147 


settled down to enjoy the fruits of their hard- 
earned prosperity. They had a bountiful crop 
of potatoes, but that year there was no sale for 
them at any price, so they were safely stored in 
pits hoping for a good spring market. Winter 
vegetables they had in plenty, and with plenty of 
their own meat they would not become penniless 
before spring, ,even though there was little they 
could earn during the winter months. 

Bessie began school in the fall at the little 
school-house a mile distant, and when cold 
weather came on Kirt carried her back and forth, 
while Kate devoted all her energies to house- 
keeping. 

She took the lead in the housework; her 
mother, who was really not able to do the work, 
following, though much against her will, in 
Kate’s lead ; and when the housework was over 
for the day, spending the time in reading and 
meditation, while Kate adorned the house with 
the work of her nimble fingers. She was fast 
learning to sew ; but in mending and darning she 
had a veritable gift, delighting to mend; and 
woe to every rent which appeared, for it was 
immediately vanquished. A neighboring woman 
had taught her how to make rugs, and during 
the stormy winter days she worked busily con- 
verting the old worn carpets into bright rugs 
which made bright carpets for the sitting-room 
and bed-rooms ; and with the mended and newly 
varnished pieces of furniture and the new dark 
green shades at the windows, which Minnie had 
bought, the little frame house wore a very 


148 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


cheery appearance. Its evenings were made 
bright and cheery by a supply of new lamps, 
whose chimneys Kate kept dazzlingly clean, 
replacing the smoky, ill-smelling affairs of 
former days. 

Mr. Ford had taken a great interest in local 
politics, and at the school-meeting in his dis- 
trict he had been elected director, which was 
considered quite an elevation by Mrs. Ford, 
and covered a multitude of sins ; but her con- 
science was quite troubled over Minnie’s fine 
clothes, and she rankled in her spirit over the 
sin of wearing flowers as ornaments and having 
trimmings on her dresses; but the three black 
and white tips^on her winter hat was the great- 
est sin of all ; but the girl was sin-hardened and 
quietly persisted in dressing, as far as her means 
afforded, like other teachers of her class. Kate 
too had followed her sister’s example, and wore 
a very becoming suit to the little white church 
in town where she preferred to go ; but it was 
not a Free Methodist, although she would drive 
her mother to the Chapel after Minnie had pur- 
chased the new cutter, and then go on to her 
church with Irene. 

It was a great trial to Mrs. Ford to see all 
of the children turning from their child- 
hood’s teachings, and she lay all the blame on 
Kate’s shoulders. Mr. Ford, when he went at all 
went to the elegant Presbyterian, in whose faith 
he had been brought up. Bessie w^anted to go to 
the Sunday School in the district, so Kirt went 
with her there ; and the girls and Irene went to 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


149 


Still another when Minnie was home to go ‘with 
them. 

It was a happy winter ; the little girls played 
with their kittens and dollies during the long eve- 
nings, while Kirt played on the violin andMr.Ford 
studied politics. During the day he and his son 
got up a larger woodpile than they had ever 
been known to have before ; and as Kate man- 
aged to make the hens lay abundantly, and Min- 
nie was earning good wages they came out in 
the spring, as Kate expressed it», square with 
the world. 

The first of May found them back at their 
old employment, but this year they had the 
biggest herd in town, numbering over fifty 
cattle — an income of over twenty-five dollars a 
week ; but with the increased numbers came the 
necessity of two town boys hired to take the 
cattle out in the morning and replace them at 
night; but as the cows came from several parts 
of the town it was no easy task to take them 
out and handle them safely through the streets 
of the town ; but Kate, mounted on sure-footed 
Doll guided them with all the assurance of an 
army officer, while the two boys and Kirt obeyed 
her slightest command. Mr. Ford assisted with 
a few of the most unruly creatures with the aid 
of the new dog; which, with Carlo, enabled Kirt 
to keep them all in range during the day. 

Minnie had invested a good share of her win- 
ter’s wages in a team, and Mr. Ford went to 
work with a will in the spring, hiring a man 
during the rush of the busy season. The fall be- 


150 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


fore he had put in a goodly piece of rye and 
wheat, and as it promised well he was greatly 
encouraged. He still had a pit of fine potatoes 
left over from last year’s crop, and he announced 
his intention of planting but a small crop 
that year as it did not pay. 

But Kate persisted that it was no sign because 
they had not paid one year that they would not 
the next, and insisted that he should plant every 
one that he could spare; and at last she had her 
own way, as she always did, and he planted five 
acres, grumbling all the time that it was time 
and money thrown away to care for so many 
which would only rot in the pit ; but his self-^ 
willed daughter only informed him that she was 
earning the living for him,^while he worked the 
farm for her, and instead of being angry at her 
saucy speech he only laughed, and named her 
the ‘‘Little Boss.” 

Butjas he was a man who delighted in being 
looked up to, he soon enjoyed the notoriety of 
having the biggest potato patch in town ; and as 
he had been elected path-master in the spring, 
and was constantly quoted as an authority on 
politics,Mrs.Ford was becoming quite reconciled 
to his farming, as he was getting back into polL 
tics again. 


CHAPTER XIV. 


Kirt’s Xtcn? ^rienb. 

Kate was counting up the cattle one bright 
afternoon in the summer of her second season. 
She stood in the stirrup slowly numbering them 
over. Fifty-five, fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight, 
fifty-nine, sixty, sixty — but no sixty was in 
sight. There were black cows, red cows, white 
cows, brindles, Jerseys, and cows of every con- 
ceivable description but not one pure white crea- 
ture to be seen, and that was the missing sixty. 

“Well Kirt,’’ she said at last, turning to her 
brother who stood on a stump with a field glass 
in his hand, “I can’t see old Smithy anywhere, 
can you ? she has gone again for sure. I almost 
wish we had never taken her. She gives us more 
trouble than any or all of the rest. When did 
you see her last?” 

“About half an hour ago, just before you 
came. She was feeding with the rest all right.” 

“Oh, she has watched her chance and gone for 
the Dooley place again, and I shall have a pretty 
chase if I find her on Barn Hill and get her back 
by five o’clock. You keep the glass so as to 
watch the rest, and Burny will keep them in 
range while I take Carlo,” and whistling for the 
151 


152 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


dog she was off with a parting hand-wave to 
Kirtand the little girls. 

“It is too had that I let her get away,” the 
boy thought regretfully, “but I thought she was 
in sight. Kate was good not to scold about it,” 
and with these thoughts he picked up his violin 
and began tuning the strings, while Burny, thor- 
oughly understanding his business wandered 
among the cattle, keeping a watchful eye that 
no more should get away. 

The little girls had come out with Kate, and 
now busied themselves in gathering the wild 
flowers which grew around the banks of the 
grassy little pond, where the cattle had learned 
to congregate every night preparatory to being 
driven to town. After they had picked all they 
wished they sat down by Kirt’s side, and with a 
large bouquet of pond lilies which he had 
gathered they wove pretty garlands of the sweet 
blossoms, and crowned themselves with them. 
They were the dear little fairies of the wood- 
lands in Kirt’s eyes, innocent and fair as the 
lilies with which they adorned themselves. The 
bright, dark eyes^ of Irene had not lost any of 
their sparkle or of their brightness in the three 
years of discipline she had undergone under 
Kate’s careful training; but had developed into 
being a generous, obedient child, the little darling 
and pet of all, complete pattern in miniature of 
her energetic sister. While Bessie, sweet, gentle 
and gay as ever, showed marked tendencies of 
Minnie’s studiousness combined with Kirt’s 


music. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


153 


These little ones bid fair to excel their older 
sisters, both in manners and in beauty, for in 
them the good and beautiful was cultivated day 
by day ; and their lives were all sunshine, not 
being subject to the management of one who had 
never learned to control herself. 

The care of the children had been the best dis- 
cipline Kate could have received, for she quickly 
learned that in order to control and guide others, 
one must learn to control oneself first ; so she 
strove hard to make herself what she wished 
them to be, and unconsciously they followed her 
example ; and now as they sat there by the 
water’s edge, laughing and chatting in childish 
glee, the snowy blossoms mingling with the 
dark curls of Irene and the brown ringlets of 
Bessie, and drooping down on their pink cheeks, 
two fairer little maidens would have been hard 
to find than the once neglected Ford children. 

Mr. Norton’s carriage rolled silently over the 
sandy road stretching through the pine chop- 
pings toward the little pond. A merry party of 
ladies filled the carriage. By his side sat his 
mother, a sweet-faced old lady who was sadly 
viewing the barren acres. 

‘‘What is it, mother? What is troubling your 
gentle spirit and making you sad this fair sum- 
mer day?” asked her son, noticing the shadow 
on her face. 

“I was thinking, Henry,” she answered, 
“what a barren waste this is. When I was 
here before we drove over this very road ; but 
the pines were here then, and so grandly beau- 


161 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


tiful they were too ; so tall and large it made 
me dizzy to look to the tops of them ; and their 
great green branches were always moving and 
moaning, singing their own requiem, I believe ; 
and the air was sweet and pure, laden with the 
fragrance of the pine. But now they are gone, 
and as far as the eye can see, looking in this 
direction, there are nothing but these rolling 
hills, disfigured by blackened stumps and strag- 
gling trees — mere ruins of the past grandeur of 
the forest. Alas ! it seems a sin to destroy such 
glorious works of nature; but man is king over 
the forest and his greed for gold must be satis- 
fied.” 

‘‘Why, mother,” replied her son laughingly, 
“how hard you are on us lumbermen. Now you 
must admit that it is through the woodman’s axe 
that civilization marches forward.” 

“That is so,” assented the old lady with a 
sigh, “but there never seems to be many settlers 
in these old pineries.” 

“No; the settlers prefer the hard wood lands, 
but they are much more fruitful. This stretch 
of pineries here contains hundred of acres, and 
just on the edge is a fine belt of hardwood. It 
seems to be in streaks. These pineries are very 
useful fo.r grazing lands as the pony grass is ex- 
cellent feed. But now we are coming in sight 
of Grassy Pond ; it is like an oasis in a desert 
and is a really beautiful spot.” 

Soon they mounted a little hill commanding 
a view of the pond and Mr. Norton checked the 
horses that they might have a good view of the 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


155 


beautiful sheet of sparkling water, dimpling and 
glistening in the slanting rays of the afternoon 
sun, framed in its background of dark green tama- 
rack and cedar trees, that cast their long shad- 
ows across its breast ; while its surface cradled 
hundreds of snowy lilies lifting their golden 
cups heavenward, reflecting back their own love- 
liness in the depths of the cool dark water below. 

Near the edge of the land, standing knee-deep 
in the water, lazily chewing their cuds, and 
whipping the flies from their sleek sides with 
their tails, were dozens of cattle, -while on all 
sides of the pond were others either contentedly 
grazing or lying at their ease, -while no sound 
broke the stillness of the Sabbath afternoon but 
the tinkling of the bells, coming to them across 
the water. They had not yet observed the three 
as they sat quietly enjoying the beauty of the 
scene, Mr. Norton telling them of Kate and her 
unique business, when suddenly the strains of 
the violin floated above the tinkle of the bells, 
soft and low at first, until it swelled into the 
magnificent chord of the Ninety and Nine. A 
moment later and they heard a boy’s voice 
singing : 

‘‘There were ninety and nine that safely lay, 

In the shelter of the Fold. 

But one was out, on the hills away, 

Far off from the gates of gold. 

Away on the mountains wild and bare. 

Away from the tender shepherd’s care; 

Away from the tender shepherd’s care. 

“Lord, thou hast here thy ninety and nine. 

Are they not enough for thee? 

But the shepherd made answer: This of mine 
Has wandered away from me. 


156 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


And although the road be rough and steep, 

I must go to the desert to find my sheep. 

I must go to the desert to find my sheep. 

*^But none of the ransomed ever knew, 

How deep were the waters crossed ; 

Nor how dark was the night that the Lord passed 
through 

Ere he found His sheep that was lost. 

Out in the desert he heard its cry, 

Sick and helpless and ready to die ; 

Sick and helpless and ready to die. 

‘‘Lord, whence are those blood drops all the way 
That mark out the mountain’s track? 

They were shed for one who had gone astray. 

Ere the shepherd could bring him back. 

Lord whence are thy hands so rent and torn? 

They were pierced to-night by many a thorn ; 
They were pierced to-night by many a thorn. 

“But thro’ the mountains thunder-riven. 

And up thro’ the rocky steep. 

There rose the glad cry to the gates of Heaven : 

Rejoice ! I have found my sleep ! 

And the Angels echoed around the Throne, 

Rejoice ! for the Lord brings back his own 
Rejoice ! for the Lord brings back his own.” 

The voice ceased its song and the last triumph- 
ant note died away across the pond, and 
echoed back from the distant hills; but the boy 
still sat motionless, bis fair face uplifted, 
touched with roseate beauty by the rays of the 
sun, his hair tossed by .the light breeze, and 
shining like a crown above his white brow, 
while the little flower-wreathed girls at his feet 
gazed at him adoringly. 

For some moments no one in the carriage 
spoke. In their hearts the grand melodious 
voice still vibrated, in the words of the magni- 
ficent hymn which had touched each heart with 
new beauty and meaning ; the lady broke the 
silence by saying : 


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157 


“Henry, who is that boy and those dear little 
flower- wreathed girls? I never heard such a 
voice before in my life from a boy !'’ 

“Neither did I,” another said warmly. “I 
never was so stirred before. His soul went out 
in his words wdth a pathos I cannot describe;’^ 
her voice trembling as she spoke. 

Mr. Norton had sat like one entranced. He 
now" aroused himself and said: 

“It is no other than Kirt Ford, the cattle- 
herder. It is he and his sister who have charge 
of all these cattle. I have known the boy two 
years, but I never dreamed that in such an 
humble unassuming lad there was such a wond- 
rous singer. I must speak to him, but it seems 
a pity to disturb that beautiful picture. The 
little girls are as lovely as fairies.” 

“Say rather as angels. A trio of angels 
would describe the picture well,” said his 
mother as he left the carriage. 

They had not noticed the approach of the car- 
riages, and Mr. Norton went quietly up unobserv- 
ed. He noticed for the first time, the boy’s pure 
gentle face unstained by sin, and guileless of all 
vanity. His broad rimmed hat lay beside him 
on the ground ; his light check shirt and blue 
overalls w"ere spotlessly clean, while the hand 
that had mastered the violin was as small .and 
shapely as a woman’s though browned by many 
suns. 

Burny’s loud bark caused them to look up, and 
Mr. Norton stepped quietly forward wuth a 
pleasant greeting, and under plea of wishing 


158 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


some lilies for the ladies, excused his presence 
and so relieved the boy’s embarassment. He 
chatted with the little girls until Kirt returned, 
and when he received the bouquet, he asked the 
boy to attend the special concert in St. John’s 
Church that evening and hear the boys sing. 

Kirt’s face shone with pleasure. He had often 
longed to hear that choir and on some Sunday 
nights he had stood in the shade of the great 
building and listened to the music of the pipe- 
organ, mingling with the voices of a score of 
boy singers, but never had he dared to venture 
within the stately edifice. 

But when Mr. Norton urged his invitation, 
telling him to meet him on the church steps and 
sit with him during the evening, where he 
could have a chance to hear all that music, it was 
a greater favor than he had ever expected. But 
he readily promised to hasten through his work 
and be there on time. 

“But you are late to-night, are you not?” 
said Mr. Norton; “you are usually at my house 
by six, and it is now nearly five. But here 
comes your sister; where has she been?” 

Kirt told him of the missing cow, adding that 
the circumstance made him think of the hymn. 

“It was beautifully sung, and afforded us a 
great deal of pleasure to hear you. What a fine 
equestrian your sister is ! It makes but little 
difference to her, seemingly, what motion or 
speed her horse is giving, she rides with the 
same graceful ease,” he said admiringly, as the 
girl came in sight, her slight girlish form swing- 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


159 


ing lightly in the saddle as Doll alternately 
trotted and galloped over logs and uneven 
ground, now leaping a fallen tree, or dashing 
away after a straggling cow, then coming quiet- 
ly down upon a walk behind the slow moving 
herd, which was forming in a long line, the 
truant white cow slowing walking with the rest ; 
all being marshalled into order by the watchful 
barking of the dogs, and the clear ringing voice 
of Kate as she gave her orders to her canine 
helpers. 

‘‘Our Kate could be nothing but a good rider, 
for she gives her whole life to anything she at- 
tempts,” answered the boy proudly, and after 
bidding Mr. Norton good-bye and promising to 
be on time, he hastened forward to his sister, 
eager to tell her of the great pleasure in store 
for him. 

The girl was delighted, and said joyfully that 
she always knew that some day someone beside 
herself would appreciate Kirt, and now Mr. 
Norton had noticed him she was sure that others 
would. And she arranged, with her father’s 
help, to put up half of Kirt’s cattle, so that he 
would have plenty of time to return home and 
make ready for the evening. 

The silvery chimes of St. John’s Church were 
pealing forth their gladsome melody as Kirt 
mounted the great stone steps and joined Mr. 
Norton. He was neatly clothed in a gray suit, 
and the fastidious gentleman could find no fault 
with his appearance. They entered the magni- 
ficent auditorium, Kirt’s heart beating widly at 


160 


KATE FORE’S FAMILY 


the sight of so many strange faces and so much 
wealth and elegance ; and he took his seat with 
Mr. and Mrs. Norton, feeling very much out of 
place and bewildered. The glare of the electric 
lamps blinded him and the soft elegance and 
drapery of the furnishing revealed a world of 
new beauty to him. 

But himself and his surroundings were totally 
lost sight of at the first notes from the melodi- 
ous organ ; and when it pealed forth the first 
chords of a glorious anthem, and the white- 
robed boys arose and sang, he sat like one en- 
tranced, scarcely breathing, until the services 
were ended. 

The ever changing emotions of his soul were 
depicted on his face, and his friend, sitting 
silently by, narrowly watched the effect the 
music had on him. But when they were out in 
the cool night air, and Kirt had said, in reply 
to the gentleman’s question as to how he had 
enjoyed himself, that it had seemed like 
Heaven and he could never thank him enough 
for the pleasure , that it would be something to 
dream of forever, Mr. Norton had said noth- 
ing, but only asked him to call at his office at 
three the next afternoon. 

Kate was waiting for him, and when he en- 
tered, so full of the music he had heard that 
he had noticed neither his long lonely walk nor 
the intense darkness of the night, she knew 
without asking that he had had his soul’s desire 
gratified. 

“I would have given anything if you had 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


161 


been there, Kate. I never knew boys could sing 
like that. But some night I shall go again and 
you shall go with me. 1 think I can play the 
chords of the anthems. Let me try,” and tak- 
ing his violin he played softly for several min- 
utes, then went to bed, too happy to rest. 

Promptly at three the next afternoon he 
presented himself at Mr. Norton’s office, and 
there found several gentlemen awaiting him — 
the rector of the church, and a German who 
had once been pointed out to the boy as a great 
violinist, were among the number. Mr. Norton 
at once brought forward a fine violin, and hand- 
ing it to Kirt asked him to play and sing the 
piece he had sung the day before. 

Kirt took it with nervous hands, feeling very 
shabby and commonplace among so many gen- 
tlemen, and evidently the object of interest to 
them ; but as he raised the instrument to his 
breast, and tried it to see if it was in tune, his 
embarrassment left him, and he played and 
sang as he never had done before. His heart 
went out with each swelling chord of the grand 
old hymn, and for the time he was lost in the 
land of music, following the Shepherd over the 
wilds, in search of the stray lamb. And with 
the last grand notes “Rejoice ! for the Lord 
brings back his own!” he laid the instrument 
down, and was surprised to see the rector and 
Mr. Norton wiping the tears from their eyes, 
and the German professor blowing his nose vig- 
orously, while he stammered in broken English 
that he had never heard anything so beauti- 


162 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


ful before, and asked him to sing and play 
again. 

He complied with his request, playing several 
selections that he knew, and at last one of the 
anthems he had heard the night before. He 
finished, fearing that he had played too long, 
and the spell on all was broken. He received 
their praises in silence, not dreaming that he 
had done anything wonderful. At last the rec- 
tor inquired : 

“Who taught you how to sing and play, my 
boy?” 

“God and the birds,” he answered, looking 
at him earnestly. 

“But surely you have had some instruction. 
You must know the rudiments of music 

“No sir; I never had any instruction. I know 
nothing of music, only what is within me, and 
that which is everywhere in nature. When I 
was a small boy, I got a violin, and I have 
played on that, but it is nothing to this,” touch- 
ing the elegant instrument reverently as he 
spoke. 

His reply was a surprise to all, but the gen- 
tleman asked again: “But you would like a 
teacher, would you not? you would like instruc- 
tions about the violin.” 

“Oh, better than anything else; and some day 
I shall have. I was hoping to take lessons of 
this gentleman another year,” turning to the 
professor, who asked : 

“How would you like to join our boys’ choir, 
and come every week to practice with them. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


163 


and besides have a violin to use at your home?” 

The boy’s eyes sparkled ; but he doubted if he 
eould have heard aright. 

‘^To join the boys’ choir of St. John’s Church?” 
he repeated slowly. 

“Yes,” Mr. Norton replied, noting the boy’s 
astonishment, and fearing lest he should refuse, 
he hastened to say : 

“We have a fund for educating poor boys, 
and all we would require of you would be to 
sing in our church, and that necessarily would 
not take much of your time from your work. 
You have a wonderful voice, simply wonderful, 
Kirt, and it must not be lost to the world for 
want of a chance ; and after this you must con- 
sider us all your friends, who will help you to 
your proper place in the world. How old are 
you?” 

“We, Kate and I, will be nineteen next fall.” 

“But your sister seems older than you. You 
do not look much over sixteen.” 

The boy’s face flushed. “I am but a strip- 
ling, sir. Kate is so much more capable and 
clever than I that she has developed faster. 
We are both the same height, though we look 
so differently, and are so different. I wish I 
was like her.” 

Mr. Norton smiled. “You are very well as 
you are, my boy. Simply a mistake in nature, 
I see. The boy was the girl, and the girl the 
boy ; but your sister is one to be proud of, too. 
My friend, the professor, wants to talk with 
you, and arrange for a series of violin lessons, 


164 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


beginning with to-day, and you are to have this 
instrument for your exclusive use. You can 
make arrangements with him for the singing, 
as he is our choir-master, and beginning with 
next Sabbath evening, we shall expect to see you 
in our choir. 

Kirt could not get away in time to assist with 
the cattle, as the German professor was loth to 
relinquish such a promising pupil; but Kate did 
his share of the work uncomplainingly, rejoic- 
ing more than he did himself over his success. 
It was everything to her that he was appreciated. 
She saw it in a different light than her mother 
did. She saw Kirt under the influence of edu- 
cated, refined people, mingling in a society 
which she longed to enter, but from which she 
was hopelessly debarred ; but she bore her de- 
privation bravely, and toiled on, gladly giving 
Kirt oif from his duties in the field, going her- 
self to the pasture to watch the cattle when it 
was necessary for him to be away ; and taking 
her sewing with her, she contrived to take many 
necessary, needed stitches, seated on Doll’s back 
with her work securely held in an old-fashioned 
saddle satchel fastened to her saddle; while 
Minnie took care of the house when she was 
there, and when she was away, the girl managed 
as best she could, for she could neither afford 
hiring anyone in the house or a boy in Kirt’s 
place, for it was the aim of the three young folks 
to buy the place in the fall. 

The season of hardship and toil passed away 
while she led her hard, lonely life, with no society 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


165 


or friends but those she made in the business 
world ; for Kate Ford was intensely proud, and 
particular as to whom she called a friend. The 
stern lessons she had learned in early life of 
poverty, and smooth-tongued, false-hearted 
friendship, had made her withdraw from the 
friendly advances of strangers and seek her hap- 
piness in doing for others, and in caring for the 
little home which was heaven itself to her. 

Keenly she felt the position she occupied in 
the eyes of the world, and she knew that she 
was not considered a lady by society, nor ever 
could be while she drove the city cattle through 
the streets, and dauntlessly entered the stables 
of the rich and poor alike, stantialling cows 
night and morning; but in the kindness of her 
heart, her courage and honesty, there was not a 
truer lady in town than she, and she proudly 
declared that while her work, menial as it was, 
darkening her face and hardening her hands, 
prevented her from entering good society, she 
would have none. 

The whole of the family were vastly proud of 
Kirt with the exception of Mrs. Ford, who, poor 
woman, could see nothing but ruin and perdition 
in her son’s singing in a High Church ’Piscopal v 
Meetin’ House, and wearing a long white night- 
gown, while the preacher was decked out in robes 
and finery; and a church building that cost a for- 
tune, with a great high steeple on it and a gilded 
cross on top, making them as bad as the Cath- 
olics ; and besides a congregation which danced, 
played whist, went to theatres and wore elegant 


166 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


gowns and trimmed bonnets as well as saying 
prayers through Lent; and observing Easter was 
a heinous crime in her eyes. Oh, it was some- 
thing dreadful for the good woman to hear; 
but trouble seldom kills, and so she lived through 
this, the greatest trial she had ever known ; but 
she had the satisfaction of laying all the blame 
on Mr. Ford and on Kate who bossed everything. 

Mr. Ford was as proud of his son’s success, 
as the mother was displeased, and for a time 
he built roseate air-castles of Kirt’s future 
greatness, declaring that one boy was worth 
more than any number of girls to make a man 
rich. 

Kate and Minnie laughed a little over this, 
but said nothing for they were equally proud of 
him, and although they had been the main stand- 
bys of the family in their poverty, and were yet 
working hard, they were willing he should take 
the glory in their father’s eyes as long as their 
mother was so opposed. 

Neither would venture into St. John’s Church 
dressed as they were, and so they invested in 
suits they would never have dared to think of 
until this present emergency, and went every 
Sunday to Saint John’s Church to hear Kirt sing, 
unknown to the majority, except as the beautiful 
tenor’s sisters; a reflected honor which they were 
proud to bear. 


CHAPTER XV. 


Cijc Hctparb of Cabor. 

Fall had come again, and for the second sea- 
son the cattle herding had stopped. Kate had 
kept a faithful account of the money earned, 
and triumphantly announced that six hundred 
dollars had been taken in ; with about a hundred 
for expenses, leaving a neat little margin for 
their six months’ work. 

“Who says that cattle herding doesn’t pay?” 
she demanded triumphantly. “I was speaking 
with Mr. Norton about it lately and he says that 
every one is astonished at our success, and many 
are envious. He also said that we had made a 
good many friends by our energy ; but I don’t 
think of that so much, only what we have got 
ahead. I never believed when we lived in the 
Higgins Settlement that we should ever have 
so much money.” 

“And it hasn’t all been spent either,” said her 
father, “though lots of it has gone for things 
for the house and farm ; two new stoves, a buggy, 
plough, potato digger, double harness, feed cut- 
ter, sitting-room carpet, bedroom set, sewing 
machine, and a one horse rake, have taken a 
167 


168 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


good share, to say nothing of our clothing and 
living.” 

“Yes: but not a cent has gone foolishly, ’’said 
Kate, “and only think, two years ago now we 
were so poor that we thought living over here 
by the camps would make us rich,” Kate an- 
swered joyously ; “and next year we shall have 
more cattle, and do still better. But the best 
of all is Kirt^s good luck, and Minnie being in 
the same school and getting better pay.” 

It was a wild November evening, drear enough 
outside, but bright and warm in their sitting- 
room. The little room was daintily furnished, 
with lace curtains at the windows, a bright car- 
pet, some new pieces of furniture, and nice 
pictures on the walls. Minnie was home from 
her school, looking very dignified and scholarly, 
with her gold glasses, which Kate insisted she 
wore just for style, but which were very ]Decom- 
ing to her nearly twenty years’ youthfulness ; 
wearing them, as Kirt said teasingly, because 
Dick Graves thought them becoming ; a heinous 
offense were the glasses in her mother’s eyes. 

Kirt sat in the bay window with his new vio- 
lin, occasionally drawing the bow across the 
strings. He had improved vastly in manners 
and appearance since his association with the 
church people and musicians; and Kate was al- 
ready planning to do without him another year, 
and let him devote his entire time to study, un- 
der the German musician, Mr. Norton’s friend. 
But his honors and advancement had not spoiled 
him. His fair young face had not lost its 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


169 


thoughtfulness, nor his great dreamy eyes their 
expression. The whole family were vastly 
proud of him but none idealized him as Kate 
did. She was willing to be nothing, that he 
might succeed. Bessie, just seven, was like 
Kirt, and seated in a low chair by his side was 
taking her first lesson on a violin, her chubby 
chin resting lovingly on it, her tiny hand 
drawing the bow, and a very serious expression 
on her baby face. 

Minnie and Kate looked at them lovingly ; 
and the older sister whispered that she could 
buy an organ that winter so that Bessie could 
begin to learn to play. 

Mrs. Ford sat in the warmest corner by the 
Oakland heater, shivering at the wind outside, 
while she glanced occasionally at a book of med- 
itations on her lap. Mr. Ford sat at the table 
working industriously at a column of figures. 
When he had finished the sum he looked up at 
Kate, who sat by the kitchen door industriously 
chopping a great bowl of mincemeat for their 
Thanksgiving pies, while Minnie sat near par- 
ing apples, greatly hindered by Irene’s little 
fingers. After a pause he said: 

“Then you think we had better sell the pota- 
toes for fifty cents a bushel now, Kate, than try 
and keep them over.” 

“I do,” she replied emphatically; “they may 
fall in price before spring or else freeze in the 
pit, for this is going to be a dreadful winter ; and 
now when we can get seven hundred and fifty 
dollars for fifteen hundred bushels I think we 


170 


KATE FOED’S FAMILY 


had better let them go. The buyer will be 
here Monday again. That will nearly pay for 
the farm; and Kirt, Minnie and I, have together 
saved four hundred and fifty dollars from our 
year’s work, and the ten pigs we sold this week 
brought another hundred ; so we can pay the 
thousand dollars cash for the farm, and you know 
that includes the forty acres of hard wood, 
which you can lumber off or else sell standing; 
and after the farm is paid for we will have three 
hundred dollars left to buy other things, a mow- 
ing machine, cultivator, another cow, and such 
things that we need. And we, Kirt, Minnie and 
I, think w^e had better do it now, as we may not 
have such a good chance again, or the potato 
crop may not amount to so much another year.” 

“That is just the trouble I see,” observed her 
father doubtfully. “We may not get more than 
ten cents a bushel another year; we couldn’t 
get that last year; and so I think that we had 
better not invest in this country, but go out to 
Dakota, and take up a homestead, where I can 
grow up with the country, and become a lead- 
ing politician. Now, if I sit here I have no 
chance against the rich mugwumps, but out 
there it would be different. Yes : that would 
be according to my judg3nent exactly; and 
when I go up town I shall send for books and 
pamphlets, so I can choose a location, and we 
can start in the spring with a covered wagon, 
and the horses could take us there in about 
thirty days. Kirt can driva the stock through, 
and the animals can graze all the way and it 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


171 


will not cost a cent to feed them, for they can 
keep themselves that way. And besides the 
journey would be only a pleasure, driving slow 
and seeing all the country : and it would not 
cost over twenty dollars to go through, for we 
can camp by the roadside nights and cook 
our meals over a fire, and when we got there we 
would have a thousand dollars to use, and in a 
year’s time we could make at least ten thousand 
on -wheat, for wheat here is but a poor crop at 
best. I only raised enough this year to furnish 
our flour for — ” 

“Fiddlesticks !” broke in Kate just as he got 
warmed to a lecturer’s tone, and his castle in 
Spain all done but the cornice. “We will do no 
such thing. I thought, pa, you had left all of 
your wild-goose schemes behind in Higgins 
Hollow, and were not going to spend your days 
in dreaming and wondering ; waiting for the 
goose to lay the golden eggs, and now, just 
when you’ve got the goose, to kill her, and so 
spoil everything. No, pa, I do not mean to be 
saucy or bossy, either; but we are going to buy 
this farm even if potatoes are not worth any- 
thing again for fifteen years. I can herd cattle, 
and raise stock ; next year we shall raise twenty- 
five calves anyway, instead of two as we did 
this ; and the farm will provide our living any- 
way ; if we use our brains while we work, we 
can get ahead,” and Kate paused for breath, 
too full of indignation to say another word, her 
dark eyes flashing and her cheeks aglow with 
pent up feelings, for in her father’s scheme she 
saw but a renewal of bygone misery. 


172 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


Mrs. Ford took advantage of Kate’s silence 
and began : 

‘‘Now Andrew, I think I ought to have my 
say. You and Kate have both had yours, and it is 
my turn. I sha’n’t go cart-horseing off to Dakota on 
any foolish scheme you might bring up; neither 
shall I stay on this old farm, indeed ! 

Nothing but a clearing in a lot of pine stumps ! 
I say let us go back to Pennsylvany where I can 
go to meetings and bring up my little lambs in 
the fold. Here they go to Baptist Sunday School 
and are being taught false doctrine in their in- 
nocence ; and I have no control over them, for 
Kate goes to the Baptist Church in town, and 
Kirt goes to that wicked ’Piscopals, which aint 
no better than Catholics, and will take Bess with 
him when she’s older; and there’s Minnie, she 
cares nothing for my religion; and she*s turned 
psychic like Dick Graves, which is nothing but 
Spiritualists after all, and they are the worst 
folks on earth; the very worst;” and her eyes 
rested angrily on Minnie’s glasses. Pausing 
only to take breath she went on : 

“You dragged your family off here into the 
woods, and you are to blame for their fors iking 
the religion of their fathers; away from all 
church privileges; and to blame for Minnie car- 
ing only for golden ornaments and fine clothes 
and dressing the children up like puppets, for 
it’s vanity, vanity, nothing but vanity. Kate 
there is the black sheep of the family. She bosses 
us all, and she will do the awful cattle-herding 
and work on Sundays; and she don’t care any- 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


173 


thing for any church, she says so, only to hear 
Kirc sing in that wicked place. His old violin 
will be the ruin of him, body and soul. You say 
you don’t care which church the children go to, 
they ought to be left alone in such matters; and 
so you go among the stiff-necked and ungodly 
Presbyterians, and pay no attention to the wel- 
fare of your children’s souls ; that shows how 
wicked you are. No, you had better mend your 
ways while it is time, Andrew Ford. The Lord 
has prospered you, and now it is your place to 
forsake your worldly ways and return to the 
land of your fathers.” 

“We can buy the farm,I suppose, ’’interrupted 
her husband, anxious to get Kate started again 
so as to out talk his wife, but Mrs. Ford was 
not to be out talked at present and she began 
again quickly: 

“You will do just as you like of course, for 
you never would take my advice, but Andrew 
Ford, remember Jonah of old, he forsook the 
path of the Lord and the Lord cursed him. You 
have talents, and God fore-ordained and predes- 
tinated that you should be a leader in Pennsyl- 
vany politics ; and when you came out here and 
went to bushwhacking His curse followed you. 
Now Jonah would not return to Nineveh as God 
commanded him to do; and so he got into a boat 
and started off ; but the boatmen did not like 
him and so they threw him overboard and a 
w’hale swallowed him and he lay in the whale’s 
belly three nights and three days, and then the 
whale vomited him out on shore. Then Jonah 


174 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


went to farming and raised a gourd, and the 
gourd vine grew to a great height and sheltered 
him from the sun. And it made him content to 
stay and not return to Nineveh ; but a cut-worm 
gnawed down the root, and the vine withered and 
died; and that is just what you are doing and 
have done. You dragged your family out here 
against the Lord’s will. Your own party were 
the boatmen, and they threw you overboard; 
and the whale was the poverty you brought on 
your family. Then you came up here and went 
to farming, and your potato patch is the gourd 
vine, and it makes you content to stay here, but 
mark my words, a cut-worm will gnaw at the 
roots and the vine will wither and die;” and 
the excited woman shook her finger wrathfully 
at her husband who sat dazed and helpless be- 
neath his wife’s eloquence. 

Kate laughed outright as her mother finished 
speaking and then said: 

‘‘Now ma, I want to tell you my version of 
Jonah. He was a Free Methodist, that is, he had 
a free method of his own, and he would not 
preach God’s truth in Nineveh, and so he 
started to go where he could find some folks he 
could make Methodists of. But while he was on 
the boat he kept telling the sailors how good he 
was, and that he had never commited any sin ; 
and by and by when it stormed they thought 
such a good person must have been the cause and 
as they were tired of him they threw him over- 
board; but a whale that had been following the 
ship took him at his word and swallowed him, 


KATE FOKD’S FAMILY 


176 


"believing him ‘good’ ; but he was not as good as 
he had represented himself to be, and lay so 
heavy on the whale’s stomach that the poor fish 
was glad to get rid of him. But when poor Jonah 
found himself on land once more, having failed 
twice in making a favorable impression on his 
fellow-travelers, he decided to be an honest 
man and do as God commanded all men to do, — 
to till the soil and earn his bread by the sweat of 
his brow ; so as you say he went to farming and 
planted a gourd vine, and it grew and grew until it 
eould grow no taller ;but he was lazy like the rest 
of his class, and did not take care of his crops, 
and a cut-worm gnawed off the root and it died. 
Now I think there is a good lesson there for pa to 
learn ; to earn his own living as God commanded 
men to do, and not to go tramping over the 
country, buying votes and making stump 
speeches and playing sweet to his enemies in or- 
der to get their votes, and trusting his bread to 
whatever popularity he may have. He should 
till the soil and keep the ground stirred up 
around the roots so the vermin won’t destroy 
his labors.” 

“But,” her mother interrupted, eager to put 
in a word, “he would not have to work for a 
living if he would do as God commanded. If 
he would only get religion, and devote his life 
to prayer and sanctification he would be taken 
eare of. He should take no thought of the mor- 
row, for the Lord will provide. There was 
Elijah in the wilderness, starving and dying of 
thirst, but he was directed to the water, and 


176 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


God sent him food by the ravens night and 
morning, and if your father would have followed 
the straight and narrow path of the Free Meth- 
odist, instead of being a worldly Presbyterian, 
he would never have been poor.” 

‘‘I suppose,” broke in her incorrigible daugh- 
ter, “that you think that God sent the ravens 
to him loaded with bread and beef-steak, but he 
didn’t do any such thing. The ravens came 
twice a day to drink, and Elijah did just what 
any other sensible man would have done in his 
place, he caught the birds and ate them, — just 
right too, for he saved his own life. And ma, 
you ought to know by this time that God only 
helps those who help themselves, and if we all 
hadn’t worked as hard as we could we would 
have been as poor as Job’s turkey; and if we 
hadn’t stirred ourselves we would have been liv- 
ing yet in the Higgins Settlement — that is, if we 
hadn’t starved to death, and Bessie and Irene 
would have been in the Leslie Home long ago; 
but as it is we are the best off of any of our 
neighbors, and have more money than the people 
in that God-forsaken country ever saw. And I 
believe that the Lord likes us better than if we 
were lazy. I am not much of a theologian, and 
I never want to be ; but I am neither lazy nor 
shiftless.” 

Minnie saw that her mother was preparing a 
lengthy reply, so she hastened to say : 

“You know, mamma, that I expect to get the 
appointment to the State Normal next year, and 
even if I do not I shall go, if the cattle pay well 


KATE FORBES FAMILY 


177 


again. I think the farm ought to be bought 
now, when we have the money. It is the best 
thing that ever happened to us, our losing every- 
thing as we did the last year we were in the 
Higgins Settlement.” 

“Indeed it was,” assented Kate, “but it was 
very hard to endure, but then the darkest hour is 
always just before the dawning. I was so dis- 
appointed the day after the frost that I hardly 
wanted to live, but it was all in God’s provi- 
dence as I see now, for here is a chance for us 
all. Norton City, and Norton’s camps have been 
our Mecca. Kirt will never find a better friend 
than Mr. Norton. He gets a salary now for 
singing in the choir, and it won’t be many years 
before he will get a fine position, for everyone 
says he has such a beautiful tenor voice, and his 
violin playing is something wonderful for a 
boy,—” 

“No more, Kate,” broke in Kirt quickly, 
blushing like a girl, “why don’t you praise Bess ? 
she never gets a false note, and can run the scale 
as well as I can.” 

“Bess is all right, ” said Kate, nodding brightly 
at the brown-haired, brown-eyed little girl 
by her brother’s side. “I expect she will aston- 
ish the world some day, but it’s the present I’m 
thinking of. And here’s Minnie. She’s now 
teaching her seventh term in the same school 
and gets thirty-five instead of twenty-five dol- 
lars, and Mr. Norton told me that when she 
graduates from the State Normal, she should 
have a position in the city schools. And here’s 


178 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


pa ; he has a good chance here in politics and is 
as respected as anybody, and it would be the 
height of foolishness to throw this all up, and 
go either to Dakota or to Pennsylvania, and if 
we are wise, weTl stay here where we all can 
amount to something ; that is all but me, for I’m 
no genius, only a worker and planner — the ‘black 
sheep’ of the family that works on Sundays, and 
whistles like a tom-boy; but that’s all the music 
I have. I can neither play nor sing but I can 
whistle. Irene and I will have to work out our 
own salvation, I guess, for we haven’t any gifts, 
have we, darling, only lots of self-will?” and she 
caught the little one in her arms and kissed her 
passionately to hide the tears which dimmed 
her eyes, for she did wish for a little apprecia- 
tion from her mother. 

Mrs. Ford was touched. “You’re a good girl, 
Kate,” she said tenderly, “and I won’t say any- 
thing against your whistling, if you won’t "whis- 
tle when I want to read my ‘Meditations.’ ” 

There was silence for a moment, then Minnie 
said as she pared the last apple : “I shall always 
think that fire, frost, famine, and no work were 
pretty good things for us after all ; but if it 
hadn’t been for Kate, our little hustler, we 
would be there yet, I’m afraid; and if she has 
no professed religion, and goes every Sunday to 
St. John’s just to hear Kirt sing,I think she has 
more Christianity than the rest of us, for Chris- 
tianity is the Gospel of the Helping Hand.” 

“Yes, Kate is our backbone,” admitted her 
father. “Now I think it is time to go to bed. 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


179 


as we have listened to two sermons to-night ; 
and Kate, I will write to Mrs. Stone Monday 
and make arrangements for the farm.” 

“O, will you?” the girl was radiant. “And 
now, I shall never regret any trouble that ever 
happened to us, as long as it got us out of the 
Higgins Settlement. It is just as you say, Kirt, 
all things work together for good.” 

The boy smiled, and lifting the violin to his 
breast, sang, Bess joining in sweetly: 

‘After long agonies. 

Rapture and bliss. 

Right was the pathway, 

Leading to this.’ ” 


CHAPTER XVI. 


2nr. ^orb ,-^tnbs ^ar>or in IPife’s 
€yes at Cast. 

Kate was putting the little sitting-room to 
rights one bright morning the following April 
and talking to her father the while. 

“We can’t expect much help from Kirt this 
summer,” she was saying, “for the church 
claims more and more of his time; it is concerts 
and musicals, and practice either with the choir 
or on the violin seven days out of the week, and 
I really can’t get him interested in anything else. 
But then as long as he is getting his education 
free and has such a splendid opportunity we 
ought not to complain, and we can get along all 
right until he begins to earn for himself ; that 
is, considerably more than he earns now.” 

“He isn’t good for anything but music, and 
where he is now if things should take a bad 
turn why he would never amount to anything,” 
said her father gloomily. He had another touch 
of the Dakota fever, and was not disposed to 
look on the bright side of affairs. 

“You just wait and see,” the girl replied 
with spirit. “We shall all be prouder of Kirt 
yet, than we have ever been. He is the 
180 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


181 


idol of every one already; nothing is complete 
without our Kirt, and the best of it all is that it 
does not spoil him at all. He is just the same 
dear boy as when he herded cows. Only think, 
that Mr. Norton is going to pay his expenses 
so he can go with the professor this week to 
Detroit, to hear that great violinist play. Isn’t 
it wonderful he has such a chance? We can 
spare him all right I know. This will be our 
third season, and I already have about seventy 
cows engaged, and of course shall have more. I 
have made arrangements to hire four or five good 
boys, and as we own our home, and owe no man a 
cent, I shall simply direct the business this year, 
do my collecting, and oversee the boys. I think I 
have tied up my last cow in Norton City.” 

“But I thought I heard you say once,” said 
her father jestingly, “that you were neither too 
proud nor too lazy to work.” 

“Neither am I,” she retorted, “when it is 
necessary, and if the need was as great this 
year I would do as I always have done ; but I 
am not obliged to this year, thank Heaven. 
But Kirt should have a chance, even if 1 went 
hungry. He is a genius, and all I am good for 
is to work ; but this year I am going to work 
differently. While the boys take charge of the 
cattle I am going to raise stock, calves, lambs, 
pigs and poultry for the fall market, and also 
take better care of the home, while you run the 
farm, and there will be money enough for you 
to hire a man when you need one. I have 
worked too hard, pa, even if you do not know 


182 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


it, and now I want a little chance for myself; 
so that I can develop the better part of my nature, 
and not grow like a miser, thinking only of 
the dollars and cents, growing narrower minded 
every day. Here are these little girls to go to 
school, and ma to look after. She is growing 
more helpless all the time. I see in a short time 
she will know but little, and as Minnie goes 
away to school this fall 1 must stay at home and 
take care of my family, and if I ever have a 
chance I must take it here at home.” 

Mr. Ford laughed, and said teasingly : “You 
are a very necessary personage, my dear, in 
your own estimation ; ’’for although he was im- 
mensely proud of his daughter’s ability, he 
would seldom admit to her that she wa« of 
much account. 

Kate shrugged her shoulders at this remark, 
and as he left the room she remarked sagely 
that she guessed her place would be hard to fill, 
and she consoled herself in admiring the little 
sitting room ;it8 bay window was tastefully filled 
with blooming plants, which she carefully ten- 
ded — they were her especial pride ; and the neat 
sweet-toned cottage organ, which Minnie had 
bought, and on which Kate was to begin to take 
lessons that summer. The organ was another 
cross to Mrs. Ford to bear, but Kate had relig- 
iously abstained from whistling in the house 
since the organ was bought, hoping thus to win 
her mother’s approbation to its presence. 

As her mother entered the room she said 
brightly: “I think we have the prettiest home 


KATE FOBD’S FAMILY 


183 


in town, ma ; everything is so cozy and nice, 
now the walls have been whitewashed and pap- 
ered ; and when the house is painted this spring 
I would not exchange it for a palace.” 

“It is all very well, ”her mother rejoined drop- 
ping wearily into a chair, ‘‘but not half as 
nice as the old home in Penn8ylvany,for that was 
in town, and this is in the country. I know I shall 
never be contented here where I see so much show 
and vanity.” 

Kate had been learning gentleness toward her 
mother, so instead of retorting, she simply said: 

“Why,I thought you had changed your mind 
about this place since pa was elected supervisor, 
and had taken you to Quarterly Meeting.” 

‘‘Well it is better than it used to be. Your 
father has turned from his evil ways at last. He 
is going back to politics, and he says I can give 
ten dollars to Elder Jones this year ; and if your 
father keeps on I think they will run him for 
sherifp another year. It is a comfort to me to 
know that my prayers are answered at last.” 

“But I do wish,” said Kate a little wistfully, 
as she plucked a yellow leaf from a plant, “that 
pa would give me credit for helping him out of 
his poverty in Higgins Settlement.” 

“You must not say one word against your 
father,” said her mother angrily. “You never 
hear me say anything against him ! you just re- 
member how he has lifted us out of our poverty 
into this nice home, and given me a chance to 
go to meetings, and given Minnie and Kirt their 
chances too. You must never say a word 


184 


KATE FORD’S FAMILY 


against him. He is a man among a thousand. 
He has gone into politics again.” 

Kate made no reply hut went out of the room 
with her head high. ‘‘Better be that tune than 
the other,” she thought, “but I wonder who did 
a good share of this lifting! But,” and she ad- 
dressed her image in the mirror in her own 
room, “Kate Ford, you have got to have a chance 
for yourself ; for Minnie will come back from 
the Normal a lady, and Kirt is fast becoming a 
gentleman ; and the children will grow up to be 
somebody; and now you must make a chance. 
You haven’t got quite a big enough pat of butter 
yet to lift you out of the can, but you will if 
you keep on, you will. It is pretty near four 
years since I had my awakening, thanks to Mrs. 
Grimes; and now I have another, and that is, 
Kate Ford, you are going to make a lady of 
yourself, and have a chance.” And with these 
words in her heart, she went downstairs, and to 
work. 


FINIS. 










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